Final article: Preventing the risk of cryptocurrency crime with a legal framework

In addition, the non-traditional nature of virtual currency also makes it difficult for authorities to trace criminals, because the servers managing virtual currency are located abroad. Therefore, the Government and ministries and branches are urgently implementing the management of virtual currency with a transparent legal framework to prevent the risk of crime.

Consequences of virtual currency

Virtual currency has not been recognized by Vietnamese law, but in reality it has had a huge influence in society. Vietnam is among the 6 largest markets in the world in terms of using cryptocurrency services and crypto assets.

It is estimated that more than 20 million Vietnamese people own crypto assets. The total value of crypto assets held by Vietnamese people in 2022, 2023, 2024 is 100, 120, 105 billion USD respectively and is mainly traded through international exchanges such as: Binance, OKX, Gate.io...

At the Forum on driving innovation for Vietnam in the new era, organized by Binance (the largest cryptocurrency exchange) in collaboration with a number of organizations at the end of 2024 in Hanoi, there was a notable piece of information citing a report by Chainalysis (an American company specializing in analyzing virtual currencies), stating that crypto assets entering Vietnam amounted to 120 billion USD (as of July 2023). This amount is 3-4 times the foreign direct investment inflow into Vietnam and increased by 20% compared to the period 2021-2022 (about 100 billion USD).

With a large number of people owning virtual currency, Vietnam has become a fertile land for virtual currency criminals to exploit. The increasing number of cases related to virtual currency shows that the influence of virtual currency on life is increasingly widespread and the community is very interested.

In fact, there have been many cases of transnational drug trafficking using virtual currency as a means of payment. In particular, there have been cases of people using cryptocurrency (Bitcoin) to pay for illegal drug transactions in Vietnam. A typical example is the illegal transportation of 157 tubes of toothpaste containing 11.5 kg of ecstasy and synthetic drugs from France to Vietnam by air, discovered on March 16, 2023 at Tan Son Nhat Airport (Ho Chi Minh City). In addition, virtual currency also increases crimes of money laundering, corruption... because of its unique characteristics.

According to some studies from law enforcement agencies, virtual currency is a type of digital asset that can be traded across borders thanks to a modern technology platform. Unlike traditional money, virtual currency is not issued or managed by a central bank or financial institution. Instead, it operates on the internet on a peer-to-peer model, allowing transactions to take place directly between users without the need for a third party intermediary.

The decentralization and high security make virtual currencies difficult to control. In particular, users can make transactions without providing personal information or opening a bank account, which poses many challenges in monitoring and managing this type of asset.

There are hundreds of virtual currencies on the market, including potential virtual currencies such as Bitcoin, which was released by Satoshi Nakamoto in 2009. Bitcoin is a special commodity. People who want to own Bitcoin can buy it with real money and wait for the opportunity to make a profit. They can also use it to make transactions similar to swiping a bank card.

However, not all countries recognize virtual currencies. China has banned Bitcoin because it contains many risks. Russia also strictly prohibits the use of Bitcoin and other digital currencies. In Vietnam, the State Bank has issued a document prohibiting credit institutions from using Bitcoin and other similar virtual currencies as a currency or means of payment.

Although investing in and using virtual currency is prohibited and not protected by law, in Vietnam, the law does not have specific sanctions for subjects using these cryptocurrencies.

Will issue a pilot resolution to be applied nationwide.

In essence, the cases and cases related to virtual currencies in Vietnam are all "fake" virtual currencies, not the official virtual currencies recognized internationally. The subjects often impersonate official virtual currencies, build websites/apps about virtual currencies of their own creation to deceive people using the "ponzzi" model, which means taking money from later people to pay earlier people, or buying and selling virtual currencies internally, and at a certain point, they crash the website/app and disappear.

With the complex nature of virtual currency, some officers directly investigating crimes related to virtual currency affirmed: The characteristics of virtual currency crimes are different from traditional crimes because they are anonymous and highly secure; KYC (know your customer) is managed by foreign virtual currency exchanges, virtual currency allows users to trade without a name, without having to register a bank account or interact with a third party, so it is very difficult to detect using traditional reconnaissance and investigation measures.

The anonymity and security of virtual currencies make them a popular choice and are used for illegal activities. Criminals today often “zigzag” the money they have stolen from their crimes to erase their traces and hinder investigations. They often use the dark web to trade virtual currencies and consider it an effective tool to legalize illegal money or transfer illegal money abroad.

The situation of virtual currency crime according to analysis by Chainalysis Company. Photo: PV

Therefore, state management of virtual currency needs to require units that buy, sell, trade, and provide virtual currency services to place servers in Vietnam to manage KYC, this is a vital issue in virtual currency management.

In response to practical requirements, on March 6, 2025, the Prime Minister issued Notice No. 81/TB-VPCP on the conclusion of the Government Standing Committee at the meeting on completing the legal framework for managing and handling virtual assets, virtual currencies, crypto assets, and crypto currencies. According to the notice, this is an urgent issue that needs to be implemented soon.

The Government assigned the Ministry of Finance to urgently preside over and closely coordinate with relevant ministries and agencies to develop a dossier to submit to the Government for issuance of a pilot Resolution for nationwide application, promoting research and development of new technologies, encouraging innovation in Vietnam, thereby promoting economic growth, in line with the general trend of the world and practical conditions of Vietnam.

Most recently, on April 3, 2025, the Prime Minister continued to sign Official Dispatch No. 29/CD-TTg, requesting ministries, branches and localities to step up the prevention and handling of activities using high technology in cyberspace to fraudulently appropriate property.

The virtual currency market in Vietnam as well as in the world is growing very fast and is a potential opportunity to make money. However, investors should be alert, need to equip themselves with knowledge, assessment ability and analytical skills to know which virtual currency to participate in, invest in, when to participate as well as when to withdraw capital to avoid the risk of "losing everything" in virtual financial transactions that are currently blinding many people.

Source: https://hanoimoi.vn/bai-cuoi-chan-nguy-co-toi-pham-ve-tien-ao-bang-khung-phap-ly-698525.html