On October 15, in Hanoi, the Ministry of Industry and Trade organized a Forum to support businesses in digital transformation and e-commerce development with the theme "Developing safe electronic contracts".
Speaking at the opening of the Forum, Director of the Department of E-commerce and Digital Economy (Ministry of Industry and Trade) Le Hoang Oanh said that over the past time, the Ministry has always accompanied businesses and organizations in the process of digital transformation; through the implementation of policy solutions to develop a healthy competitive e-commerce market, build ecosystems to support businesses in effectively applying e-commerce to business activities, and improve the ability to adapt to new business and technology trends.
Ms. Oanh emphasized that in the context of the constantly fluctuating global market, the ability to be flexible and ready to transform is the key to the sustainable development of businesses. E-commerce has become a key driving force in the digital economy, with an impressive growth rate of 25% in 2023 and is expected to account for 10% of total retail sales by 2025. This process not only opens up great opportunities, but also encourages businesses to quickly adapt and make important strides.
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| Director of the Department of E-commerce and Digital Economy (Ministry of Industry and Trade) Le Hoang Oanh spoke at the event. (Source: Ministry of Industry and Trade) |
Ms. Le Hoang Oanh said that contracts are the basic form of expression of civil and commercial relationships, and are the beginning of transaction processes in social life and economic activities. Therefore, concluding contracts in the electronic environment is also one of the key issues of legal regulations on electronic transactions, as reflected in the UNCITRAL Model Law on Electronic Commerce and the United Nations Convention on the Conclusion of Contracts Using Electronic Documents.
The Law on Electronic Transactions 2005 and Decree 52/2013/ND-CP on e-commerce also provide fundamental regulations to ensure the legal value of electronic contracts, including the issue of electronic contract authentication.
The role of the above organizations is to ensure the technical aspects of the process of signing electronic contracts/agreements in an online environment are safe. CeCA Organizations will provide a digital infrastructure to help businesses and people use electronic contracts protected by authentication and trust technologies, aiming at technical connection and supporting third parties such as tax authorities, banks, financial institutions and dispute resolution agencies to perform related operations. These organizations play a role in protecting the legal value of electronic contracts and creating trust for participating parties, including people and businesses.
From 2022 to 2024, the Department of E-commerce and Digital Economy has supported CeCAs to connect with the Vietnam Electronic Contract Development Axis to provide electronic contract certification services. Statistics up to August 2024 show that 48,533 enterprises have used certified electronic contracts. The total number of certified electronic contracts recorded by the Electronic Contract Development Axis is 490,471 contracts.
The Department of E-commerce and Digital Economy said that electronic contracts, which are the basic foundation of business operations, will be effectively protected and guaranteed to be as valuable as paper/original copies in transactions. Because they are authenticated at the time of signing, businesses and individuals do not have to wait or travel to complete the signing, nor request authentication when needed for a third party. Consumers and individuals are also guaranteed rights and fairness when complaints and disputes arise.
“The comprehensive application of electronic contracts will help the country save 50,000 - 70,000 billion VND/year including the cost of printing documents, delivery costs and preserving paper documents and records according to the prescribed time. More importantly, it will help businesses shorten the time and cost of signing contracts, proving transaction history and reputation when transacting with management agencies or banking and financial institutions,” said Ms. Oanh.
According to the E-commerce White Book, the rate of businesses using electronic contracts increased gradually from 29% to 42% in 2020-2022. However, it decreased to 41% in 2023.
Mr. Do Ke Cong - Director of the Digital Signature and Electronic Contract Business Center, VNPT, also admitted that there are some customers who are concerned and do not continue to use electronic contract services, although they also realize that electronic contracts bring clear economic and commercial efficiency.
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| Signing ceremony of cooperation commitment to promote the application of secure electronic contracts to support businesses in digital transformation. (Source: Ministry of Industry and Trade) |
Upon investigation, this unit found that there were many legal barriers such as lack of acceptance and recognition of the value of electronic contracts by third parties such as: treasury, customs, tax, banks... Lack of guidelines and regulations on concluding and implementing electronic contracts in each specific field.
“Currently, the Law on Electronic Transactions also has very clear regulations on the value of electronic contracts. But sadly, our customers bring an electronic contract to the treasury to complete payment procedures according to state regulations, but treasury officials still require a set of paper contracts attached to the documents,” Mr. Cong cited.
Mr. Nguyen Dang Trien, representative of Viettel Telecom Corporation (Viettel Telecom), emphasized the role of digital signatures and authentic identification in ensuring safety and preventing fraud in electronic transactions. As signing in the electronic environment becomes more popular, we must be more careful.
"Using a digital signature from a licensed, reputable entity will help protect customers' rights, especially when the digital signature is accompanied by a time stamp and eKYC identification at the time of signing, both businesses and individuals participating in signing documents or contracts in the electronic environment can feel more secure than with traditional paper copies," said Mr. Trien.
At the Forum, participating businesses agreed that policies related to electronic contracts need to be further promoted to address practical difficulties. Issues such as high costs, complicated procedures, and limited acceptance from third parties (tax authorities, banks, etc.) remain significant barriers.
Therefore, businesses expect the Government and relevant agencies to soon issue documents related to technical standards so that electronic contracts can be accepted by third parties as well as increase support and facilitate electronic contracts to become a popular transaction tool. This not only helps optimize business processes but also promotes transparency and safety in transactions, thereby enhancing competitiveness and ensuring sustainable development in the digital economic environment.
Source: https://baoquocte.vn/bo-cong-thuong-ung-dung-hop-dong-dien-tu-toan-dien-giup-dat-nuoc-tiet-kiem-50000-70000-tynam-290285.html
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