Crypto-asset services in Vietnam will have to report suspicious transactions to the State Bank of Vietnam, or the country’s central bank, according to the newly-approved amendments to law on anti-money laundering and banking.

Vietnam’s National Assembly, the country’s highest legislative body, approved the amendments, to the Law on the State Bank of Vietnam, the Law on Anti-Money Laundering, and the Law on Credit Institutions, on Monday.

Under the changes, crypto-asset service providers, among other entities, must file reports on suspicious transactions when there are reasonable grounds to suspect that the assets involved are proceeds of crime. A new article sets out 15 examples of suspicious activity in the crypto-asset sector.

They include making multiple large crypto-asset transactions in a short period without a clear business purpose; depositing, trading, and withdrawing crypto assets in quick succession soon after opening an account; and accessing a provider’s platform through tools that hide a user’s identity or internet address.

Others include splitting transactions into amounts below the thresholds that trigger customer checks or reporting; and converting crypto assets into several different types without a reasonable business or investment purpose.

The central bank can add other suspicious activities later.

The measures build on Vietnam’s Law on Digital Technology Industry, effective from January, that formally recognized crypto assets, and form part of the country’s efforts to tighten anti-money-laundering controls.

The new law will become effective on December 1, 2026.

Vietnam currently has about 17 million people trading digital assets, or 1.7-fold the number of people trading securities, said Alex Phan, a co-founder of Vietnam-based startup investor XYZ Foundation. The transaction value exceeds $120 billion.

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