As soon as a cash-dominant nation, Vietnam has developed considerably over the previous seven years, with digital cost strategies together with digital wallets, QR codes, and account-to-account (A2A) transactions changing into more and more fashionable, a brand new report by AppotaPay, a Vietnamese cost firm, says.
The report, which seems at cost traits throughout Asia-Pacific (APAC), finds that almost all of Vietnamese shoppers (59%) now favor cashless funds, citing comfort, security and theft prevention, in addition to higher monetary administration as key causes. QR codes, specifically, are the favored methodology, with 62% of shoppers utilizing them to transact a median of 16.2 instances per 30 days.
These findings are confirmed by information from Vietnam’s central financial institution. Pham Anh Tuan, Director Common of the State Financial institution of Vietnam (SBV)’s Fee Division, mentioned throughout an trade occasion in September that cashless cost transactions have grown at a median annual charge of over 67% since at the least 2021. Over the previous yr, greater than 60% of transactions in Vietnam have been contactless, with cashless quantity reaching 5.5 billion in Q1 2025, together with 4.5 billion digital transactions.
QR code funds, specifically, elevated by a staggering 106.7% in quantity within the first 11 months of 2024 and 84.8% in worth year-on-year (YoY).
A2A funds additionally surged. In 2024, the Nationwide Fee Company of Vietnam (NAPAS) processed 9.56 billion transactions, a rise of roughly 30% within the variety of transactions in comparison with 2023, mentioned NAPAS Deputy Common Director Hung Nguyen.
Fintech and monetary entry
Vietnam’s adoption of digital funds has grown alongside its fintech trade. Between 2018 and 2022, the variety of new fintech companies rose by over 180 to about 260 fintech corporations, in accordance to Statista.
A lot of these have reached vast success, attracting international buyers and pushing their valuations above the billion-dollar mark. For instance, M-Service, the proprietor of Vietnam’s largest cell cost app MoMo, reached unicorn startup in 2021 after securing a US$200 million Collection E spherical. MoMo is Vietnam’s main digital pockets, serving over 30 million customers and a whole bunch of hundreds of companions nationwide.
Final yr, M-Service posted its first full-year revenue, and the corporate is now reportedly engaged on an preliminary public providing (IPO) overseas. It’s mentioned to be in negotiations with companions and may very well be elevating 10% of its valuation from the providing, which may happen in Singapore or the US.
Monetary establishments are additionally increasing digital companies. VPBank, for instance, launched in 2021 its digital banking platform VPBank NEO. The platform is designed to supply an inexpensive banking proposition with superior digital expertise, leveraging cloud computing, information, and synthetic intelligence (AI) for customer support but additionally fraud detection. By the tip of 2024, VPBank NEO had attracted greater than 10 million customers, processing greater than 700 million transactions.
Equally, VPBank’s digital-only financial institution, Cake, now serves 5 million clients and processes 700,000 credit score purposes month-to-month. These spectacular figures replicate a shift in the direction of digital transactions and profound buyer behavioral modifications.
Vietnamese banks are additionally increasing their assist for small companies. For instance, Vietcombank has launched VCB DigiBiz, a digital banking resolution solely designed for enterprise clients, providing seamless and handy banking companies 24/7.
Doan Hong Nhung, Government Board Member and Head of Retail Banking at Vietcombank, mentioned at an occasion in September that the financial institution is at present engaged on data-driven credit score scoring methods to ship extra clear and tailor-made lending.
Vietnam’s dynamic fintech panorama has helped considerably increase monetary inclusion. In response to SBV’s Pham, 86.97% of adults held a checking account by the tip of 2024, totaling 204.5 million particular person cost accounts and 154.1 million financial institution playing cards. As compared, solely 31% of adults had a banking account in 2014, demonstrating the speedy enlargement of monetary inclusion.
Challenges stay
Regardless of progress, challenges to fintech development and adoption stay. Deputy Prime Minister Ho Duc Phoc recognized challenges resembling privateness points, and reluctance to share private information as essential limitations. Infrastructure points, resembling weak or unstable community protection in some areas, are additionally impeding transaction effectivity.
AppotaPay’s report additionally highlights these considerations amid hovering fraud dangers. In response to Sumsub’s APAC Id Fraud Report 2024, the area has among the many highest fraud charges on the planet, peaking at 6% in Indonesia. This determine is 4 instances the height within the US and Canada at 1.66%.
Trying forward, SBV’s Pham mentioned that the federal government shall be specializing in advancing shared digital infrastructure, cost expertise platforms, and diversifying monetary companies. With digital funds remaining a cornerstone of nationwide digital transformation, the central financial institution will proceed to work on enhancing the authorized framework, selling trendy companies resembling home playing cards and e-wallets, and strengthening public-private partnerships to make sure a protected, environment friendly and inclusive cost ecosystem.
These initiatives will construct on notable developments which have already occurred this yr, together with the introduction of a banking regulatory sandbox, and a pilot program for the cryptocurrency trade. In July, new rules had been launched, permitting revolutionary fintech merchandise to be examined underneath a particular regulatory sandbox regime. Fintech options eligible for testing embody credit score scoring, open API, and peer-to-peer lending.
In September, Vietnam’s Deputy Prime Minister Ho Duc Phoc signed and issued a decision on the launch a five-year pilot program with strict necessities for the crypto trade. These guidelines cowl the providing and issuance of crypto property, the group of crypto-asset buying and selling markets, crypto custody companies, and platforms for issuing crypto property, marking the primary time Vietnam has formally allowed crypto buying and selling and associated companies underneath a authorized framework.
Featured picture: Edited by Fintech Information Singapore, primarily based on photos by Frolopiaton Palm, lifeforstock and Wagner France 3D Design through Freepik
