‘Vietnam’s crypto asset market is about to enter a major restructuring’

Mr. Nghiem Minh Hoang, VBA’s financial technology (fintech) expert, said that Vietnam is moving from the stage of “accepting the existence” of digital assets to gradually introducing it into the legal framework, creating a foundation for more transparent and sustainable development.

– For many years, Vietnamese crypto has developed strongly but most transactions take place outside the legal framework, what creates this paradox?

– The crypto asset market in Vietnam has existed for a long time. This is a global technology trend, and comes from people’s natural need to find new investment channels.

Over the past 10 years, the market has created many opportunities, attracting a large number of participants. However, without a legal corridor, most of it takes place on foreign exchanges or OTC, where individuals trade directly with each other.

According to Chainalysis statistics, Vietnam has about 17 million people who own crypto assets, with a total capital flow from June 2024 to June 2025 of about 200 billion USD – the scale shows that the demand is real.

I have received many comments from OTC traders that they are willing to pay taxes, comply with regulations and be managed by authorities and hope to have a clear legal framework. When operating spontaneously, they have almost no protection mechanism. Risks related to fraud, disputes or anti-money laundering are always present, while it is difficult for traders to verify their partners.

– Can licensing cryptocurrency exchanges eliminate the “black market” of cryptocurrencies?

– The Government’s approach to crypto assets has changed. Previously, Vietnam had a rather cautious approach. The fact that the Digital Technology Industry Law officially recognizes digital assets as a type of asset protected by law shows that we have chosen a new direction: accepting certain risks to bring the field into the management and development framework. This is a very clear signal to the market.

After the law, the Government continued to issue Resolution 05 on piloting cryptocurrency exchanges and set a goal of having the first exchanges licensed to operate in 2026. In my opinion, licensing is a very important step to eliminate the “black market”, but not the whole story.

A crypto asset market is about more than just exchanges. To fully operate, it also requires a regulatory system related to anti-money laundering, customer identification, asset custody, token issuance, cash flow management, business conditions as well as technical standards. In other words, what is expected is not simply a few licensed exchanges, but a complete legal ecosystem so that all entities can operate transparently and safely.

– When included in the framework, which group has the most influence?

– The biggest change does not lie with individual investors. Previously, crypto was a very accessible market. With just a phone, users can open accounts on international exchanges and trade.

When managed, participants must identify and the asset portfolio is managed more strictly, but I do not think that causes the number of individual investors to decrease. With about 17 million accounts today, the community size is likely to be maintained, or even increase slightly.

The big change will come from businesses and institutional investors. Previously, despite seeing the market’s potential, most could not participate due to lack of legal basis. Although the number of organizations is not as large as individual investors, the financial resources they bring will be much greater. This is the most significant change in market structure.

– Many Vietnamese blockchain startups had to register legal entities abroad to operate. How can current policy changes reverse the trend?

– This is one of the most positive signals I’ve seen. Vietnam has had many startups and blockchain businesses that have made a name for themselves in the world. However, because there is no clear legal corridor in the country, they must register as legal entities in Singapore or some other countries. Meaning, the economic value they create cannot return to contribute directly to the Vietnamese economy.

After the Digital Technology Industry Law and Resolution 05 were issued, many businesses expressed excitement at the possibility of returning to Vietnam, operating in Vietnam and developing domestically.

Of course, along with expectations there are still concerns. The law is just the first step, while detailed regulations are still being developed. I hope that decrees and circulars will soon be issued to create stability for businesses as well as attract more domestic and foreign investment capital.

– How do you imagine the Vietnamese crypto asset market will change in the next 5 years?

– I think the period 2026-2027 is a period of strong restructuring. Any restructuring will not go smoothly. Many new problems will arise and need to be constantly adjusted. But after that period, the market will be more mature in terms of technology, operating model, quality of investors and participating organizations.

In the early stages, large corporations and financial institutions can approach with caution. As the legal framework matures and the operating mechanism becomes more transparent, we will witness stronger participation of institutional capital flows.

This is also what has happened in many countries. Initially, the market was mainly led by startups and technology businesses, then gradually attracted large financial institutions as the legal framework was completed.

Vietnam will go through a similar process. At that time, the big change lies not only in the market size, but also in the quality of capital flows and the maturity level of the entire crypto asset ecosystem.