Minister Pham Minh Chinh has asked the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) to start working on a pilot project for a cryptocurrency.
According to a July 4 report by the Phnom Penh Post, the blockchain-based project is expected to happen between 2021 and 2023. The initiative is part of PM’s e-Government development strategy towards a digital economy. The 62-year-old leader is Vietnam’s leading Communist Party dubbed digital currency “an inventible trend.”
Apart from cryptocurrencies, the government also hopes to develop solutions involving artificial intelligence (AI), big data, virtual reality, and augmented reality. Chinh is confident that these technologies could create notable breakthroughs for building a digital government.
Back in 2017, Vietnam imposed a ban on Bitcoin payments. However, in May, the country’s Ministry of Finance created a research group to study crypto regulations. It is also worth mentioning that Vietnamese authorities are already exploring the potentials of blockchain tech. The Ministry of Education and Training of Vietnam began uploading high school and university diplomas to blockchain last year.