Vietnam To Devise Legal Framework for Crypto

Vietnam’s Deputy Prime Minister Le Minh Khai has tasked the country’s Ministry of Finance with spearheading research for the implementation of a legal framework governing digital assets.

According to a report by local news outlet Vietnamnet on Monday, the ministry must identify specific legal documents requiring amendment or enactment for the management of the nascent asset class.

The research is being conducted alongside the ministries of justice, information and communications, as well as the State Bank of Vietnam.

This move is another step in the country’s march to formally legislate digital assets following the nation’s central bank’s ban on bitcoin and other cryptos for use as a means of payment in 2017.

In August 2017, Vietnam’s then Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc issued Decision 1255, seeking the establishment of a legal framework to manage digital assets.

Vietnam’s research extends upon that decree by further studying crypto’s relationship with real assets and will assess the timeframe required for the legal framework’s implementation.

While some effort has been made in the past to push ahead with regulatory proposals, a decision has not yet been reached.

The government has not banned crypto trading and allows citizens to hold them as assets. Despite the country’s lack of a legal framework for owning, trading and using crypto, Vietnam’s adoption of digital assets — by total population — is among the highest in the world.

A decision to study and guide policy discussion expands on multiple research mandates that assess crypto’s impact on Vietnam’s shifting digital economy.

It will also assess the requirements needed to develop legislation aimed at controlling risks but in such a way as to not affect other sectors including e-commerce and information technology, according to the report.

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