Vietnam's Ministry of Justice has stated that although cryptocurrencies and virtual assets are not banned in the country, there is an urgent need for a legal framework to govern them, according to Cao Dang Dinh, deputy head of the ministry's civil law department.
“Cryptocurrencies and virtual assets are defined and treated in different ways around the world, and Vietnam does not yet have regulations to manage them,” Dinh said in a statement on Friday. He said regulations needed to be established soon because virtual assets face “high risks that can be easily exploited.”
In response to these concerns, the country's government ordered the State Bank of Vietnam to review cryptos and virtual assets to prevent their use in money laundering. Additionally, the Ministry of Finance has been tasked with creating a legal framework for them by May 2025.
Although cryptocurrencies are not legal tender in Vietnam, people continue to exchange them through foreign platforms or directly with each other. This has led to significant gains in the crypto market for the country. Vietnam ranked third globally in cryptocurrency earnings behind the US and UK, with profits of $1.18 billion last year, according to a report by US crypto data provider Chainalysis.
*This is not investment advice.