Vietnam Sets Fines for Unlicensed Crypto Trading
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- Decree No. 284/2026/NĐ-CP imposes fines up to 50 million dong ($1,900) on individual investors trading through unlicensed platforms and up to 200 million dong ($7,700) for unauthorized crypto offerings and serious AML violations, effective Sept. 1
- Vietnam authorized authorities under the new rules to suspend crypto activities, revoke licenses, and confiscate assets
- Deputy Finance Minister Nguyen Duc Chi said in May that Vietnam's regulated crypto market could see its first activities begin in Q3, following January's opening of license applications for domestic exchanges
- Chainalysis ranked Vietnam fourth in its 2025 Global Crypto Adoption Index and estimated Vietnamese traders moved more than $220 billion in digital assets between July 2024 and June 2025
Why it matters: With Vietnamese traders moving $220 billion in digital assets in a single year and ranking fourth globally in adoption, the $1,900–$7,700 penalties create a tangible enforcement threshold for unlicensed activity and channel participation toward the domestic exchanges Vietnam began licensing in January.
