Vietnam advances five crypto firms in digital asset pilot program review
Vietnam has advanced five companies through the initial assessment of its five-year digital asset pilot program, though no official licenses have been issued. To Tran Hoa of the State Securities Commission announced the progress. Under Resolution No. 05/2025/NQ-CP, applicants must possess 10 trillion dong (approx. $383 million) in charter capital and clear Level 4 security standards. While Decree 284 introduces strict penalties for unlicensed operations starting September 1, 2026, domestic traders using offshore platforms will not face immediate fines due to a six-month transition period triggered only after the first license is granted.
Vietnam crypto exchange licensing progress
▪To Tran Hoa, deputy standing head of the Digital Asset Trading Market Board under Vietnam's State Securities Commission, disclosed the licensing progress at the Vietnam RWA Summit 2026.
▪Five companies passed the initial assessment stage under Vietnam's five-year digital asset market pilot, though no crypto exchange licenses have been issued yet.
Charter capital requirements
▪At least 65% of an applicant's charter capital must come from institutional shareholders, with more than 35% contributed by at least two qualifying organizations such as commercial banks, securities companies, fund managers, insurers, or technology companies.
▪Vietnam's Resolution No. 05/2025/NQ-CP requires each crypto exchange applicant to have at least 10 trillion Vietnamese dong, approximately $383 million, in contributed charter capital.
▪Crypto exchange applicants must obtain an appraisal showing their technology meets Level 4 information-system security standards, assessed by the Ministry of Public Security.
Decree 284 violation penalties
▪The maximum administrative penalty under Decree No. 284/2026/ND-CP is 200 million dong for an organization and 100 million dong for an individual.
▪Organizations providing crypto services or advertising an exchange without a license face fines of between 180 million and 200 million dong, alongside potential orders to remove associated websites, software, and trading systems.
▪Decree No. 284/2026/ND-CP, taking effect on September 1, 2026, establishes penalties for unlicensed services, improper issuance, weak customer checks, and anti-money laundering failures during Vietnam's crypto pilot.
Domestic investor transition period
▪Under Article 9 of Decree No. 284/2026/ND-CP, domestic investors trading outside a Ministry of Finance-licensed provider face organizational fines of 30 million to 50 million dong, or individual fines of 15 million to 25 million dong.
▪Domestic investors will not face immediate fines on September 1, 2026, because Article 7 of Resolution 05 delays the licensed-platform requirement until six months after the Ministry of Finance licenses its first service provider.
Resolution 05 pilot framework
▪Vietnam introduced its five-year regulated crypto market pilot through Resolution 05 on September 9, 2025, establishing rules for issuance, custody, trading, and licensed service providers.
▪The pilot framework initially permits locally issued crypto assets to be offered only to foreign investors, requiring tokens to be backed by real-world assets and prohibiting them from representing securities or fiat currencies.
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