Vietnam’s Ministry of Finance has agreed to establish a research group charged with studying and making policy proposals regarding cryptocurrencies and virtual assets on. The group, announced May 11, will comprise nine members led by the Vice Chairman of the State Securities Commission, Pham Hong Son.
The additional members include other representatives of the country’s securities regulator, the General Department of Taxation, the National Institute for Vietnam Finance, Vietnam Customs, and the State Bank of Vietnam’s Department of Banking and Financial Institutions.
The research group will help the country stay abreast of new developments within the rapidly evolving blockchain sector, allowing Vietnam to respond to regulatory challenges with greater agility.
Vietnam banned crypto in 2018
In August 2017, Vietnam’s prime minister approved a plan to oversee the development of a legal framework for cryptocurrencies by August 2018, with indicating that crypto assets would be legally recognized within the country.
However, April 11, 2018, would see Bitcoin outlawed as a means of payment — meaning that while individuals and businesses were still free to make private investments in crypto, virtual currencies cannot be used to purchase goods or services.
Two days later, a directive was issued mandating that credit institutions restrict the services provided to virtual currencies to protect against anti-money laundering risks. Vietnam has not formally updated its regulation since introducing the directives two years ago, with no regulatory framework currently existing for crypto exchanges in the country.
Exchanges are not regulated in Vietnam
Despite the lack of legislative framework, local firms have made attempts to establish exchanges in Vietnam over the years.
Recently, the peer-to-peer trading platforms operated by Binance and Paxful have targeted the Vietnamese market, with Binance integrating a fiat currency on-ramp for Vietnamese dong in January.
