Vietnam Sets Deadline for Pilot Crypto Exchange Licences by Mid-January

TheNewsCryptoPubblicato 2026-01-08Pubblicato ultima volta 2026-01-08

Introduzione

Vietnam is advancing cautiously into the digital asset space by planning to license pilot cryptocurrency exchanges under a sandbox framework before January 15, 2026. This follows the enactment of the Law on Digital Technology Industry in effect since January 1, 2026. The government, led by Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, has set strict criteria for licensing, including a minimum capital requirement of approximately $400 million and at least 65% institutional ownership from qualified entities like banks or securities firms. These institutions must also demonstrate two consecutive profitable years and clean audits. Multi-agency oversight will be implemented to monitor operations, money flows, anti-money laundering risks, and cybercrime, ensuring a tightly controlled initial crypto environment. Only about five companies are expected to be licensed initially.

Vietnam has taken a cautious path towards incorporating digital assets into its financial system. As the Vietnamese government plans to license pilot crypto exchanges by mid-January, specifically before January 15, 2026, under a sandbox framework.

Previously, in June 2025, Vietnam announced the Law on Digital Technology Industry which took effect on January 1, and explicitly covers digital assets. Following this, Digital and cryptoassets have drawn growing interest from domestic and foreign investors.

Vietnam Sets Strict Framework

According to the Vietnam Investment Review, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh has ordered regulators to issue these licences, as this plan was part of a national finance-sector review meeting outlining important tasks for 2026.

With that, the launch of the sandbox-style regulatory system keeps the initial crypto market tightly controlled. As the government plans to be controlled under this framework, only around five companies will be licensed initially. The criteria for the sandbox are very strict.

Each is required to meet a minimum capital threshold of about $400 million and maintain at least 65% institutional ownership, with more than 35% contributions from two or more qualified institutions such as banks or securities firms. These institutions must also show two consecutive profitable years and clean audits.

In addition, Vietnam intends to implement multi-agency governance, with the Ministry of Finance supervising operations, the State Bank of Vietnam monitoring money flows and anti-money laundering risks, and the Ministry of Public Security addressing cybercrime, to ensure that the initial crypto market is closely tracked and under control.

Highlighted crypto news today:

Binance Launches USDT-Settled Gold and Silver TradFi Perpetual Contracts

Domande pertinenti

QWhat is the deadline set by Vietnam for issuing pilot crypto exchange licenses?

AThe deadline is mid-January, specifically before January 15, 2026.

QWhat is the minimum capital requirement for companies to be licensed under Vietnam's crypto exchange sandbox?

AThe minimum capital requirement is about $400 million.

QWhich government body in Vietnam will supervise the operations of licensed crypto exchanges?

AThe Ministry of Finance will supervise the operations.

QWhat are the ownership requirements for companies seeking a crypto exchange license in Vietnam?

ACompanies must maintain at least 65% institutional ownership, with over 35% contributions from two or more qualified institutions like banks or securities firms.

QWhich law in Vietnam, effective from January 1, explicitly covers digital assets?

AThe Law on Digital Technology Industry, announced in June 2025, explicitly covers digital assets.

Letture associate

When Doing Cryptocurrency Payment, the First Thing is Licenses, What is the Second?

When launching a crypto payment business, obtaining the necessary licenses is the crucial first step. However, the second, and arguably more critical, step is designing a comprehensive operational framework that forms a coherent business loop. This loop must be clearly understood and executable by all stakeholders: banks, payment partners, exchanges, on-chain analytics providers, regulators, and your internal team. Many projects mistakenly believe a single license permits all operations. Licenses merely grant entry; they don't define how the specific business functions. The real challenge lies in detailing every aspect of the workflow. This involves clarifying the customer base, the flow of fiat and crypto assets, the settlement process, and establishing clear lines of responsibility for risks like AML compliance, sanctions screening, chargebacks, and regulatory inquiries. A robust framework must answer seven core questions: Who are the clients and merchants? Who collects fiat and crypto? Who handles conversion and custody? And who is ultimately accountable for compliance and risk management? Projects often fail not from a lack of licensing, but during due diligence when they cannot convincingly explain these operational details. Therefore, beyond securing licenses, the priority must be constructing a closed-loop system. This system ensures the business model is transparent, risks are managed, responsibilities are delineated, contracts are aligned, and the entire process is comprehensible to partners and regulators. The true competitive edge in crypto payments lies not in acquiring a license quickly, but in integrating licensing, banking, compliance, and operations into a sustainable and executable whole.

marsbit19 min fa

When Doing Cryptocurrency Payment, the First Thing is Licenses, What is the Second?

marsbit19 min fa

Arthur Hayes Analysis: AI Bubble Nears Burst, Crypto Market Faces Short-Term Pressure

Arthur Hayes argues that the current AI market is a bubble poised to burst, which will exert downward pressure on the crypto market in the near term. The core trigger is rising oil prices due to the US-Iran conflict and a blockade of the Strait of Hormuz. Higher energy costs directly increase the operational expenses of AI data centers, squeezing profit margins for companies like Google, Anthropic, and OpenAI. Hayes predicts that persistent inflation from high oil prices will force Trump, in a bid to win the November election, to turn public sentiment against the AI industry. He may propose regulations and taxes on data centers and AI companies to appeal to voters concerned about costs and job displacement. Such political rhetoric could shatter market confidence. Furthermore, the market is unlikely to healthily absorb the massive concurrent IPOs of SpaceX, Anthropic, and OpenAI, which together seek valuations in the trillions. The combination of soaring energy costs, overwhelming equity supply, and negative political pressure will puncture the AI bubble. Hayes notes that nearly all new USD liquidity since 2022 has flowed into AI, leaving crypto like Bitcoin behind. When the AI bubble bursts, liquidity will contract sharply, pulling down all risk assets, including cryptocurrencies. In response, Hayes's fund, Maelstrom, has sold all AI-related stocks and non-core cryptocurrencies. It maintains core positions in Bitcoin and Ethereum while increasing exposure to energy sector equities, betting on rising oil and gas prices. He expects Bitcoin to bottom after the AI-led market decline, before rallying again with future monetary easing.

Foresight News33 min fa

Arthur Hayes Analysis: AI Bubble Nears Burst, Crypto Market Faces Short-Term Pressure

Foresight News33 min fa

To C, To B, and the Next Big Thing Called To A

After To C and To B, the Next Wave is To A: Serving AI Agents In a recent quarterly earnings call, Meituan's Wang Xing introduced a new concept: To A (To Agent), signifying that future business services will increasingly target AI Agents as primary clients, not just consumers or merchants. This shift implies that internet giants must now consider how to make their services more appealing for AI Agents to recommend, fundamentally altering traditional distribution logic. This "To A era" is prompting an unusual trend of alliances among major tech companies. Unlike previous competitive battles, firms like Meituan, Tencent, JD.com, Huawei, OPPO, and OpenAI are rapidly forming partnerships. The reason is strategic: as AI Agents become the primary user interface, handling tasks from a single command (e.g., "Book a Japanese restaurant for tomorrow"), the risk for platforms is being bypassed entirely. Companies are positioning themselves within this new value chain. Three primary strategies are emerging: 1. **Super-Entry Points + Service Providers:** Platforms like Tencent's Yuanbao, WeChat, and ChatGPT aim to be the first-stop Agent, integrating various services (food delivery, shopping, travel) from partners like Meituan and JD.com. 2. **Apps as Callable Services:** Companies like Meituan, JD.com, and Uber are ensuring their core services remain accessible and callable by external Agents, shifting from front-end apps to back-end capabilities. 3. **System-Level Agent Entry Points:** Smartphone makers (Huawei, Honor, OPPO) are leveraging their OS-level AI assistants to control the initial user command, redistributing it to relevant service apps. While alliances offer mutual benefit—entry points gain service capabilities, and service providers gain traffic—inherent conflicts of interest exist. A dominant Agent platform could eventually attempt to connect directly with suppliers (restaurants, hotels), bypassing current aggregators like Meituan or Ctrip. Other unresolved challenges include the potential for Agent recommendations to become a new form of paid ranking and unclear accountability for faulty recommendations. The current rush to form alliances is a defensive move by service providers to secure their position before the landscape solidifies. In this To A-driven restructuring, the greatest risk is not losing the race but failing to hear the starting gun.

marsbit42 min fa

To C, To B, and the Next Big Thing Called To A

marsbit42 min fa

The More Lifelike the Robot, the More Terrifying? Unveiling the 'Uncanny Valley Effect' in the Era of Humanoid Robots

As humanoid robots become increasingly lifelike, they confront a significant psychological barrier known as the "Uncanny Valley Effect," a concept proposed by Japanese roboticist Masahiro Mori in 1970. This phenomenon describes a dip in human comfort and acceptance when robots appear almost, but not perfectly, human. Minor imperfections in facial expressions, eye movements, or skin texture trigger a subconscious sense of unease, as the brain detects something trying, yet failing, to mimic a person. Examples range from the controversial human-like robot Sophia to animated characters in films like *The Polar Express*. The effect poses a key design challenge for robotics companies. Some, like Boston Dynamics, avoid it entirely by creating highly capable but visibly mechanical robots. Others, like Hanson Robotics, push for greater human likeness despite the risk. For consumer robots, especially in homes, most manufacturers opt for stylized or clearly mechanical designs to ensure broader acceptance. While the Uncanny Valley remains a powerful force, its impact may diminish over time through technological advancements that achieve near-perfect realism or through generational familiarity as people grow accustomed to interacting with humanoid machines. Ultimately, navigating this psychological frontier requires as much understanding of human perception as of robotics technology itself.

marsbit42 min fa

The More Lifelike the Robot, the More Terrifying? Unveiling the 'Uncanny Valley Effect' in the Era of Humanoid Robots

marsbit42 min fa

Over $31 Million Stolen from Humanity, Is the Team Behind It Paving the Way for a New Project?

The article reports a major security incident involving Humanity Protocol (H), resulting in over $31 million stolen. The team attributes the hack to a private key leak from a Humanity Foundation member, leading to a rapid sale of H tokens and a 90% price drop. However, prominent on-chain investigator ZachXBT suggests the event might be an "exit scam" orchestrated by the team, rather than an external hack. This suspicion is fueled by the team's controversial history, including past management failures, legal issues, and previous scandals like outsourced technology and problematic airdrops. Further investigation reveals that the core team behind Humanity is already involved with a new project called "Everything," which recently secured funding. This has led to community speculation that the alleged hack is a deliberate scheme to abandon the H project while shifting focus and resources to their new venture, leaving investors to bear the losses. The article questions whether this is a genuine security failure or a premeditated "rug pull" strategy.

Odaily星球日报1 h fa

Over $31 Million Stolen from Humanity, Is the Team Behind It Paving the Way for a New Project?

Odaily星球日报1 h fa

Trading

Spot

Futures