In August 2025, Vietnam hosted two consecutive heavyweight crypto conferences — GM Vietnam and Conviction. One was held in Hanoi, the capital, and was backed by local financial and policy resources; the other was unveiled in Ho Chi Minh City, led by the Ninety Eight (Coin98) team, with more formal specifications and a focus on Crypto

The two events appeared almost continuously during the same period, creating a more complete picture: the Vietnamese market is at a critical inflection point from grassroots vitality to institutionalization and internationalization.

1.

• GM Vietnam: The stage in the capital, the momentum of the exchange The significance of the capital's debut: This is the first time GM Vietnam has hosted in Hanoi. In the past, Vietnam's crypto activities were mainly concentrated in Ho Chi Minh City, but the move to the capital clearly has a “policy signal” — the government's attitude towards digital assets has changed from vague to exploratory acceptance. One focus of the live discussions was the regulatory sandbox: the Ministry of Finance is preparing a draft for a digital asset pilot market, which is expected to be submitted to the government in August of this year.

It is widely expected that more specific policies will be introduced at the end of the year or next year, especially a clear framework for exchange compliance and taxation.

• Full attack on the exchange: In this event, the exchange had the greatest presence. Platforms such as HTX, LBank, Gate, MEXC, and BingX all sent large teams of more than 8 people to attend the conference. They didn't just show up at the booth, they also went deep into the local community: treating guests to dinner, organizing small parties, and sponsoring side events. This style of play works particularly well in Vietnam, because the community here relies on offline interaction, and the exchange plays not only a platform role, but also a “organizer” and “center of active atmosphere” for the community

.

• International manufacturers arrived: The appearance of international players such as Tether, Sui, and Animoca Brands made GM Vietnam more international. Many overseas investment institutions and funds are also using this time as a window to enter Vietnam to

  determine market opportunities.

  

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2. Conviction: The home of Coin98, the

• debut of a more formal, more capitalized brand: Conviction is the first conference brand launched by Ninety Eight (the parent company of Coin98). The venue was selected at Thisky Hall in Ho Chi Minh City (the former location of GM Vietnam), and the overall atmosphere ratio GM Vietnam is more formal. A large number of Coin98 ecosystem projects are displayed centrally, and the site layout and process are also more biased towards the capital market style, such as a centralized connection between startup teams

and investment institutions.

• The appearance of developers: In addition to the Coin98 series, the EVM ecosystem was also very rich in concurrent activities. In addition to ETH Vietnam, there were also teams from the Base ecosystem at the venue. These people aren't huge, but they're trying to blend memes with game narratives into the EVM ecosystem. This exploration fits with Southeast Asia

's strong gaming culture, and may form a new narrative breakthrough in Vietnam in the future.

• The connection between capital and project: Conviction is that it creates a stage for a “formal connection” between local projects and international funding.

  Unlike GM Vietnam's partial community atmosphere, the emphasis here is more on project presentation + investment and financing exchanges, which is more like a microcosm of Vietnam's capital market.

  

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3.

• True portrayal of Vietnam's ecology

• Community polarized channel community: through games

, memes, and transactions
Mainly. The earliest starting point was when Axie Infinity exploded, and many old communities started at that stage. After the GameFi boom receded, they switched to games in the TON ecosystem, and then to Meme coin trading, gradually forming a complete “trading community.” These communities have close relationships with KOLs and members
, and many local players come from them. They retweet each other and form matrix-like communication.

• Builder community: Mainly developers in ecosystems such as ETH, Base, Solana, and Sui. These ecological programs have large investment and high activity standards, and can easily attract local technical talents and university groups. It is worth noting that many young people joined not because they are trading coins, but are interested in technology and ecology itself. They brought fresh blood and made the vibe of the Vietnamese builder community more professional and long-term.

The

• relationship between exchanges and communities: In Vietnam, small exchanges play very grounded. They are closely connected to the local community and often maintain user loyalty through offline gatherings, sponsorship activities, and emotional maintenance. An exchange is not just a “platform”, but a “core node” for the community

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4. Background of the policy: Vietnam is making a

• breakthrough in the legal status of cryptography: In June 2025, the National Assembly of Vietnam passed the “Digital Technology Industry Law”. This is the first time that “digital assets and crypto assets” are clearly recognized at the legal level. The Act will officially take effect on January 1, 2026, and some of the incentives will come into effect as early as July 1, 2025. This means that Vietnam's digital asset industry

has come out of the “grey area.”

• Regulatory sandbox: The Ministry of Finance is advancing the draft “Digital Asset and Cryptocurrency Market Pilot” and plans to submit it to the government in August. The goal of this sandbox is to allow investors to participate, but also pass tests to improve key regulatory standards such as KYC, anti-money laundering (AML), anti-terrorist financing (CFT), and escrow. The sandbox is expected to run until the end of 2027, which will provide a realistic basis for Vietnam to establish

a complete legal and regulatory system.

• Interest in international capital: Executives from South Korea's

• Upbit parent company Dunamu and Asiana Financial Group visited Vietnam at the end of July to meet directly with government and Ministry of Finance leaders and expressed their desire in Vietnam The crypto market

's willingness to make long-term investments.

• Binance CEO Richard Teng visited Vietnam in mid-July and emphasized that Binance sees Vietnam not only as a consumer market, but also as a strategic partner for the future digital economy.

The combination of these signals shows that Vietnam is not just a “hot spot in Southeast Asia,” but is gradually forming an emerging center with policy certainty, international attention, and local vitality.

5.

1. Summary: Vietnam's crypto identity is emerging.

   Through GM Vietnam and Conviction, we can see three clear lines of the Vietnamese market: community level: the channel community and the builder community go hand in hand, with both grassroots energy and

   a long-term developer base.

2. Market level: The exchange is deeply involved in offline and community, forming a unique “exchange = community organizer” model.

Vietnam is gradually moving from a grassroots driven active crypto market to an institutionalized, capitalized, and globalized regional hub.