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Licensed exchanges must satisfy four gating conditions before going live: client asset segregation at the wallet layer, key management with no single point of failure, AML compliance embedded in transaction flows, and Level-4 information system security certification under Vietnam’s national standard. These are preconditions for licence issuance under Decision No. 96/QD-BTC, not post-licensing recommendations.
Five entities cleared initial screening under Resolution No. 05/2025/NQ-CP: VIXEX, SCEX (formerly LPEX), CAEX, TCEX, and Vietnam Digital Assets JSC (Sun Group ecosystem). CAEX is anchored by VPBank and has received investment from OKX Ventures and HashKey Capital. TCEX is anchored by Techcombank. Two applicants, Dolphinex and SSID, submitted incomplete dossiers and did not qualify.
Yes. The pilot’s implementing rules require sensitive datasets, including key material and transaction records, to be stored on infrastructure physically located in Vietnam and available for regulatory inspection. MPC-based key management deployed on Vietnamese infrastructure satisfies this requirement while maintaining operational resilience.
From September 1, 2026, domestic investors are legally required to trade through Ministry of Finance-licensed platforms under Decree No. 284/2026/NĐ-CP. Vietnam’s regulated market is not a future opportunity; exchanges that go live first will define the competitive landscape for Vietnam’s 17 million crypto holders.
