Current Status of TCEX Development Under Vietnam’s New Regulations

Current Status of TCEX Development Under Vietnam’s New Regulations

Following the issuance of Resolution 05/2025/NQ-CP, Vietnam launched a 5-year pilot framework for the crypto asset market, officially entering the mandatory compliance implementation phase in September 2026. As one of the leading entities in the initial batch undergoing compliance reviews, Technocommercial Crypto Asset Exchange (TCEX, backed by the Techcombank ecosystem) has adapted its strategy and development as follows:

1. Regulatory Access and Licensing Review Progress

• Passed Initial Screening: TCEX, along with four other institutions—VIXEX, CAEX (VPBank/VPBankS), LPEX (LPBank), and an exchange under Sun Group—has been shortlisted in the Ministry of Finance’s (MoF) initial qualification review.

• Capital Threshold Requirements: New rules mandate a minimum paid-in capital of VND 10 trillion (~USD 383 million) for licensed exchanges. TCEX met this requirement leveraging the financial strength of its parent company, Techcombank.

• Ownership Structure and Security Certification: TCEX completed the information system security level assessment (meeting Class 4 or higher requirements) and established a defense system featuring cold/hot wallet isolation and bank-grade multi-signature custody compliant with Central Bank and MoF standards.

2. Strategic Pivot Toward RWA Tokenization

Resolution 05 stipulates that crypto assets issued locally in Vietnam must be backed by Real-World Assets (RWA), explicitly excluding securities and fiat currencies (including stablecoins like USDT/USDC). In response, TCEX adjusted its business model:

• SPV and Legal Structure Implementation: TCEX utilizes Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs) to establish asset isolation mechanisms, performing fractional ownership division on commodities, commercial real estate usage rights, and premium real estate yield rights.

• Oracle Integration and On-Chain Risk Management: TCEX integrated physical asset oracles at the transaction layer to synchronize offline asset valuations, title registrations, and cash flows on-chain in real time, satisfying regulatory requirements for 1:1 real-value pegging.

• Segregated Compliance Pools and Investor Restrictions: Under the new regulations, primary issuance and secondary trading of locally issued RWA tokens during the initial pilot phase are restricted to foreign investors. TCEX built dedicated cross-border KYC/AML verification pipelines and segregated liquidity pools to serve this segment.

3. Fiscal, Tax, and Clearing Compliance

With the Ministry of Finance issuing Circular 32/2026/TT-BTC and Circular 41/2026/TT-BTC, the crypto asset tax framework has been formalized:

• Mandatory VND Settlement: Vietnam crypto exchange TCEX integrated its transaction engine with dedicated Vietnamese Dong (VND) clearing accounts, prohibiting unanchored crypto-to-crypto settlements.

• Withholding Tax and Reporting Obligations: As a prospective licensee, TCEX implemented an automated withholding system to deduct Personal Income Tax (PIT) or Corporate Income Tax (CIT) at 0.1% per transaction for foreign entities and individuals trading on the platform.

4. Industry Competition and Challenges