Vietnam’s Ministry of Finance has confirmed that no companies have applied to participate in the country’s five-year digital asset trading pilot despite rising global interest in regulated crypto markets.
At a Sunday press briefing, Deputy Minister of Finance Nguyen Duc Chi told local media outlets that the ministry has not yet received any proposals from enterprises seeking to pilot digital asset trading in the country.
“As of now, the ministry has not received any proposals from enterprises,” Chi said, adding that the pilot will allow a maximum of five participants. He also said the ministry is expediting the process so that the first eligible enterprise can be licensed and begin operations as soon as possible.
“We hope to launch this pilot before 2026,” Chi said. “However, the progress will depend on how well enterprises can meet the required conditions.”
Capital demands and asset restrictions slow market response
The news comes nearly a month after the government issued Resolution 05/2025, officially launching a long-awaited crypto pilot.
However, the lack of applicants highlights the heavy compliance hurdles and narrow product scope that companies must navigate to qualify. These include heavy capital requirements, strict staffing limitations and restrictions on the crypto products that can be offered.
According to the Ministry of Finance, licensed crypto asset service providers (CASPs) must maintain a minimum capital of at least 10 trillion dong (approximately $379 million). The amount is comparable to the requirements for full commercial banks and is unlike those of typical financial technology startups.
Other Southeast Asian jurisdictions may be a more viable option for crypto companies. Singapore, Hong Kong and Japan’s non-bank pathways are within the $1 million to $5 million range, offering lighter capital requirements.
In addition to high capital demands, Vietnam is also restricting the issuance of crypto assets backed by fiat currencies or securities. This essentially rules out most stablecoins like USDT or USDC and the booming class of tokenized securities and money-market funds.
This essentially narrows the product set that could attract retail and institutional interest.
Related: Vietnam state-run Military Bank partners with Dunamu to launch crypto exchange
At odds with global demand
The restrictions come at a time when fiat-backed stablecoins and tokenized treasuries are some of the fastest-growing segments in crypto.
Stablecoin supply has recently passed $300 billion, with transfers exceeding $15.6 trillion in the third quarter of 2025. Inflows during the quarter totaled $46 billion, led by Tether’s USDT, Circle’s USDC and Ethena’s synthetic stablecoin USDe.
Meanwhile, RWA.xyz data showed that tokenized treasuries climbed above $8 billion, led by BlackRock’s BUIDL fund and Franklin Templeton’s BENJI tokens. This means that institutions may be looking for yield, collateral and faster settlement.
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