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Vietnam proposes fines for unlicensed digital asset platforms
Vietnam’s Ministry of Finance has proposed fines for individuals and organizations trading digital assets on unlicensed platforms, according to a draft decree published for public feedback.
Individuals could face penalties up to 30 million dong (US$1,200), while organizations may be fined up to 200 million dong (US$7,584) for violations related to digital asset trading.
The draft also outlines fines between 70 million (US$2,654) and 200 million dong (US$7,584) for breaches such as violating foreign ownership rules, providing misleading disclosures, or failing to report information to regulators.
Penalties would be highest for offerings to ineligible investors, non-compliant insurance, and missing required disclosures.
Domestic individuals using unlicensed platforms could be fined 10 million (US$379) to 30 million dong (US$1,138).
Fines for unauthorized ad, unlicensed activities, and operating outside licensed scopes could reach 200 million dong (US$7,584).
Foreign investors face penalties up to 100 million dong (US$3,815) for fund transfer violations or false transaction declarations.
Service providers failing to verify investor identities may be fined 50 million dong (US$1,900) to 70 million dong (US$2,680).
🔗 Source: Vietnam News
🧠 Food for thought
Implications, context, and why it matters.
Fines target a largely unlicensed market awaiting its first approved exchange
- Proposed fines cover trading on unapproved venues, yet Vietnam’s pilot to license domestic crypto exchanges has no applicants per deputy finance minister Nguyen Duc Chi, and no homegrown operators hold a license 1.
- The pilot limits approvals to five operators and requires VND 10,000 billion in capital with 65% institutional ownership, meaning majority control by regulated financial institutions 2.
- The first license could arrive in early 2026 2. Approved venues must launch within 30 days of approval 3. Six months after the first launch, trading outside authorized venues faces legal action 4. Most of Vietnam’s estimated 17 million crypto users still rely on offshore platforms (overseas platforms not licensed in Vietnam) 5.
- MEXC, Binance, and Bybit serve local traders without domestic permits 5. With annual crypto inflows near US$100 billion, much of that activity could face penalties under the plan 6.
Compliance vendors can move early on strict KYC and advertising rules
- The draft decree requires Know Your Customer (KYC) checks and penalizes unauthorized ads, with higher fines for worse violations.
- Approved venues must meet Anti-Money Laundering/Counter-Terrorist Financing (AML/CTF) rules, custody standards, and risk controls aligned with the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) 7.
- Vendors can start building localized KYC, AML monitoring, and ad review tools ahead of expected licensing in early 2026 2.
- With only five slots and high capital needs, exchanges may outsource some compliance work to firms with FATF aligned products and knowledge of Vietnam’s institutional ownership structure 4.
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