Asia Legal

Currently, the Government of Vietnam has not yet issued license to any investor wishing to do cryptocurrency business in Vietnam In a press conference on monetary policy and banking operations in the first quarter of 2019. Mr. Nghiem Thanh Son, Deputy Director of Payment Department of the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) verbally affirmed that the State Bank of Vietnam has not yet issued any license to any company wishing to do cryptocurrency business in Vietnam. Running cryptocurrency business has been excluded by Vietnam in the Schedule of WTO Commitments, and in the absence of Vietnamese legislation on this kind of business, any investor wishing to do cryptocurrency business in Vietnam is requested to consult with and obtain the approval from various competent authorities in Vietnam, including Ministry of Planning and Investment, the Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Industry and Trade, the State Bank of Vietnam; and other relevant Ministry (if any) in accordance with clause dd, Article ...

In the first part of the article, we answered the question: “Are cryptocurrencies recognized as non-cash payment instrument under Vietnamese laws?, and in the second part, we will answer the question: “Is usage of cryptocurrencies as a payment method prohibited under Vietnamese laws?” Article 1 Decree No. 80/2016/ND-CP, amending the Decree No. 101/2012/ND-CP, on non-cash payments provide that “6. Non-cash payment instruments in payment transactions (hereinafter referred to as payment instruments), including cheques, payment orders, collection orders, bank cards and other payment instruments as prescribed by the State Bank. 7. Illegal payment instruments are payment instruments not included in Clause 6 of this Article.” Accordingly, only non-cash payment instruments, including cheques, payment orders, collection orders, bank cards, and other payment instruments as prescribed by the State Bank are recognized as legal payment instruments. Since the cryptocurrency has not yet been prescri...

In this Article, we will help foreign companies wishing to do cryptocurrency business in Vietnam to understand legal aspects on this type of business under the applicable laws of Vietnam. The first part of the Article will answer the question: “Are cryptocurrencies recognized as non-cash payment instrument under Vietnamese laws?” To answer the above question, we have to review, among others, the following key legal documents: a. Civil Code No. No. 91/2015/QH13 issued by the National Assembly of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam dated 24th November 2015 (“Civil Code 2015”); b. Criminal Code No. 100/2015/QH13 issued by the National Assembly of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam dated 27th November 2016 (“Criminal Code 2015”); c. Law on Credit Institutions No. 47/2010/QH12 issued by the National Assembly of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam dated 16th Jun 2010 (“Law on Credit Institutions 2010”); d. Law No.17/2017/QH14 issued by the National...