Vietnam could see the first official activity in its regulated crypto asset market as early as the third quarter of 2026, according to Deputy Finance Minister Nguyen Duc Chi.
Speaking at the Digital Trust in Finance 2026 forum on Tuesday, Chi said the country is preparing a regulatory framework aimed at ensuring transparency and investor protection for crypto-related activities.
“We believe that, as early as the third quarter, Vietnam could witness the first official activities of its crypto asset market, operating under a framework designed to ensure safety and transparency,” Chi said, according to VnEconomy.
The comments represent another step in Vietnam’s broader effort to formally regulate one of Asia’s fastest-growing crypto markets. Earlier this year, Vietnamese authorities opened a licensing pathway for domestic crypto trading platforms as part of the initiative.
The move aligns with Vietnam’s wider digital economy strategy, which aims to have the digital economy account for at least 30% of gross domestic product by 2030. The plan also targets 80% cashless transactions and more than 40% of businesses participating in innovation-related activities.
In March, reports indicated that five Vietnamese firms had advanced through the initial qualification stage to launch the country’s first regulated cryptocurrency exchange. The companies included affiliates of private banks Techcombank, VPBank, and LPBank, along with VIX Securities and conglomerate Sun Group.
Vietnam has also moved toward creating a taxation framework for digital assets. In February, regulators proposed a 0.1% tax on individual crypto transactions processed through licensed service providers, treating them similarly to traditional securities trades.
Despite the lack of a fully regulated market so far, Vietnam remains one of the world’s most active crypto economies. According to Chainalysis, the country ranked fourth in the 2025 Global Crypto Adoption Index, behind only India, the United States, and Pakistan.
Vietnam has also become one of Asia’s largest crypto trading hubs, ranking third globally in onchain value received with an estimated $200 billion in transactions recorded in the 12 months through June 2025, trailing only India and South Korea.
Despite the rapid growth, most Vietnamese crypto traders still use offshore exchanges such as Binance, OKX, and Bybit.
To encourage more trading activity on domestic platforms, Vietnam introduced a five-year crypto pilot program in September 2025. Under the initiative, all crypto transactions are required to be settled in Vietnamese dong through locally registered companies.
