Five Firms Advance for Vietnam’s First Licensed Crypto Exchange as Offshore Ban Looms
Vietnam’s Ministry of Finance shortlisted five firms — affiliates/subsidiaries of Techcombank, VPBank, LPBank, VIX Securities and Sun Group — to advance in the process for the country’s first licensed crypto exchange, under rules aimed at moving trading onshore and curbing use of overseas platforms (Binance, OKX, Bybit). Vietnam ranks fourth globally for crypto adoption (Chainalysis) with roughly $200 billion in trailing 12-month transaction volume. The new law treats crypto assets as property and bans them as legal tender. Authorities opened licence applications after publishing pilot rules that originally included very high entry conditions (reported registration capital near $379m) that deterred applicants; that capital requirement has been removed to speed approvals. Regulators are also drafting proposals that could bar Vietnamese nationals from using foreign platforms and restrict fiat-backed stablecoins in favor of locally registered issuers and asset-backed tokens. A draft tax framework would treat crypto trades like securities: a 0.1% tax on individual transactions executed through licensed providers and a 20% corporate tax on institutional crypto profits. For traders, key near-term watchpoints are licence approvals, any formal ban or access restrictions on offshore exchanges, capital and custody rules for onshore venues, and the proposed tax regime — all of which will affect liquidity, onshore volume, token listings, and ease of access to international markets.
Neutral
The news is structurally market-neutral for individual token prices because it primarily concerns regulatory infrastructure and market access rather than explicit positive or negative news about a specific cryptocurrency’s fundamentals. Short term, announcements that restrict offshore exchanges or announce heavy compliance costs can reduce liquidity and cause volatility as traders adjust — potentially bearish for tokens that trade mainly offshore. Conversely, clearer licensing, tax rules and strong local incumbents (e.g., Sun Group) can bring trading onshore, increase local liquidity and enable new onshore products, which is potentially bullish over the medium term. The removal of the very high capital requirement increases the probability of faster licence approvals, which favors onshore volumes but still carries uncertainty about any outright ban on foreign platforms and tax drag. Traders should therefore expect heightened volatility around licence decisions and rule finalizations; once the regime is clear, market effects will depend on how restrictive access to offshore venues and stablecoin rules prove to be.