Vietnam has commenced accepting applications for licenses to establish digital asset trading platforms, marking a significant step in the country’s regulated cryptocurrency market.

The State Securities Commission of Vietnam (SSC) opened the licensing window following the implementation of new administrative protocols as per Decision No. 96 from the Ministry of Finance. This decision is part of a larger initiative to formally regulate cryptocurrencies in the country.

“The acceptance of applications for these procedures will start on January 20, 2026,” stated the SSC, presenting this move as an integral part of the country’s strategy to bring cryptocurrency under regulatory control.

This initiative follows the enactment of Vietnam’s Law on the Digital Technology Industry at the start of the year, which for the first time includes digital and cryptocurrency assets in legal statutes.

While officially recognizing cryptocurrency assets as property, the government has clearly stated they do not have legal tender status and maintains limits on their usage for payments.

Rising Interest from Financial Institutions

On October 6, 2025, the Ministry of Finance remarked that no firms had submitted applications to join the five-year pilot program for cryptocurrencies, citing stringent capital requirements and eligibility criteria.

Recently, interest seems to be growing among domestic financial players. Vietnam News reported that around ten securities firms and banks are publicly announcing their readiness to enter the cryptocurrency market once licensed. The institutions are in the preparation stages for their applications and are not currently operating any licensed platforms.

This includes companies like SSI Securities, which set up SSI Digital in 2022; VIX Securities, which invested in the VIXEX digital platform; and several prominent banks such as Military Bank, Techcombank, and VPBank. All of these institutions indicated they would initiate operations post regulatory approval.

Despite this procedural progress, regulatory approvals for any digital asset exchanges remain unfulfilled under the pilot scheme. The Vietnamese authorities have yet to confirm the receipt of any applications since the licensing window was initiated.

Vietnam’s licensing requirements are notably stringent, requiring applicants to be domestically based entities with a minimum paid-in capital of 10 trillion dong (approximately $380 million). Additionally, at least 65% of the capital must be owned by institutional shareholders, with foreign ownership limited to 49%.