IFC Vietnam: A new 'safe harbor' for global digital asset companies

Photo caption — The Vietnam International Financial Center in Ho Chi Minh City is expected to have a total area of about 898 hectares, including the Saigon ward, Ben Thanh ward and Thu Thiem urban area in An Khanh ward. Photo: Quang Chau/VNA

Unlike the restrictive and tightening legal situation in many other places, Da Nang and Ho Chi Minh City - where Vietnam is establishing a parallel IFC model - provide a favorable environment, starting to attract global cryptocurrency "giants".

This growth momentum was clearly demonstrated through the launch of the Global On-chain Economic Alliance on November 25 at IFC Ho Chi Minh City. The alliance brings together many prominent international names such as Tether - the world's largest stablecoin issuer; Republic - the leading digital asset consultancy in the US; and Ava Labs - the company behind the open-source Layer-1 blockchain platform Avalanche.

Domestic enterprises also joined the alliance, including Dragon Capital - the oldest independent fund management company in Vietnam; Sky Mavis - Vietnam's first blockchain "unicorn" famous for the hit game Axie Infinity; and Viettel Digital Services Company - the unit in charge of digital infrastructure of Viettel telecommunications group.

The first key members of the alliance are leading domestic and foreign units including: Viettel Digital Services Company - the leading unit in digital infrastructure in Vietnam; Dragon Capital - the leading fund management institution in Vietnam; Tether - the world's largest stablecoin issuer; Ava Labs - a high-performance blockchain platform; Sky Mavis - the leading "unicorn" in blockchain gaming; Republic - the leading digital asset consultancy in the US; and On-chain Academy - the leading unit in creating on-chain economic knowledge in the region.

Additionally, in the past few months, Binance and Bybit – two of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange operators – have also signed memorandums of understanding with the authorities of Da Nang and Ho Chi Minh City to support the formation of the IFC.

Mr. Tran Huyen Dinh, Chairman of the Fintech Application Committee of the Vietnam Blockchain and Digital Assets Association (VBA), commented that IFC is a market where international businesses come to do business, and the presence of large cryptocurrency companies participating in global trading activities here will help the center become more vibrant as well as promote its growth.

What makes IFC unique is that it allows for the establishment of a dedicated fintech sandbox mechanism. Within this framework, participating organizations and individuals are exempt from administrative, disciplinary and civil liability, as long as they comply with approved testing procedures. IFC members are also subject to fewer financial controls, and enjoy faster approval processes and more favorable tax and investment incentives than the current legal framework in other regions in the country. Mr. Tran Huyen Dinh commented that the mechanisms within IFC are more flexible and offer greater incentives to attract foreign companies and capital to Vietnam.

With the legal corridor for digital assets becoming clearer, instead of exploring regulations or operating in gray areas, many businesses have taken concrete steps in the hope of becoming early leaders in a market worth hundreds of billions of dollars.

Notably, in August, Da Nang granted a sandbox license to Basal Pay, becoming the first city in Vietnam to license a pilot project for a domestic cryptocurrency-to-fiat conversion platform. Developed by AlphaTrue Solutions, Basal Pay allows tourists to convert cryptocurrencies, especially stablecoin USDT, to Vietnamese Dong in just a few seconds, eliminating intermediary steps and aiming to reduce transaction costs by about 30% compared to traditional channels.

Mr. Dinh, who is also the founder and CEO of AlphaTrue Solutions, affirmed that the sandbox mechanism gives them the flexibility to innovate while still ensuring full compliance with legal regulations. According to him, Da Nang and Ho Chi Minh City are now large enough to serve as testing grounds for the sandbox model in Vietnam.

However, it is not just about easing the barriers to entry for global digital asset companies. The real value lies in what IFC Vietnam can bring to these businesses – specifically, access to the country’s large and growing cryptocurrency user base and tech talent.

Mr. Dinh added that Vietnam is one of the world’s leading countries in cryptocurrency adoption, making it an ideal market to provide digital asset services without much effort in educating the market. He also said that if tech companies want to save costs, they can set up offices here and hire local programmers.

According to a report by crypto payment gateway Triple-A, more than one in six Vietnamese will own cryptocurrency by 2024, even though the asset class will not be officially legalized at that time. Over the past few years, Vietnam has consistently been among the top 10 markets for cryptocurrency adoption globally, with the number of digital asset trading accounts quickly surpassing the stock market.

A recent report from Chainalysis revealed that the total value of cryptocurrency received in Vietnam reached 220 billion USD in the period from July 2024 to June 2025, an increase of 55% compared to the period 2023-2024 and putting Vietnam in third place in the Asia-Pacific region, after India and South Korea.

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