The government of Vietnam has approved a five-year pilot program to test the cryptocurrency trading market, set to begin in September 2025. This initiative includes the establishment of legal cryptocurrency exchanges and the implementation of clear requirements for market participants.
This is reported by Business • Media
Participation Conditions for Companies and New Regulations
Under the program, only Vietnamese companies registered as limited liability companies or joint-stock companies will be allowed to participate. Token issuance is permitted only for foreign investors, and the minimum charter capital for the issuing company must be at least 10 trillion dong, equivalent to approximately $379 million. Additionally, at least 65% of the capital must be provided by institutional investors, and the maximum share of foreign ownership in the company will be 49%.
After the issuance of the first license, there will be a six-month transition period, after which trading digital assets on unlicensed platforms will become illegal for Vietnamese citizens. Detailed sanctions for violations of the new rules have not yet been announced.
Technological Support and Future Status of Digital Assets
The South Korean company Dunamu, which operates the Upbit exchange, has already signed a memorandum with the Military Bank of Vietnam. As part of this collaboration, the company will provide technological support for the launch of the exchange based on the Upbit platform.
“The country will officially recognize cryptocurrencies as an asset class starting in January 2026. According to journalists, the local central bank had previously warned about the risks of digital assets, but now blockchain and cryptocurrencies have been included in the list of 11 key technologies that the government will develop in the coming years.”
At the same time, despite the recognition of cryptocurrencies as an asset, the government of Vietnam does not plan to change their status as a means of payment – Bitcoin and other digital currencies remain outside the legal framework for transactions. In the future, authorities are considering the creation of special cryptocurrency “sandboxes” in the cities of Da Nang and Ho Chi Minh City as part of the development of an international financial center.
Earlier, the head of the National Bank of Ukraine, Andriy Pyshny, emphasized the impossibility of recognizing crypto assets as a means of payment.