Proposal to seize digital assets in criminal cases
The Ministry of Public Security is proposing to add regulations allowing for the seizure of crypto, digital assets, securities, and property rights in the draft policy document for the amended Penal Code.
According to the drafting agency, the current regulation in Article 47 of the Penal Code mainly addresses tools and means of committing crimes, illegal gains, and prohibited items. Meanwhile, many new types of assets have emerged in the digital space such as cryptocurrencies, e-wallets, virtual assets, and electronic certificates with financial value.
The Ministry of Public Security believes that the lack of clear definitions for these types of assets complicates investigation, seizure, freezing, tracing, and recovery of criminal assets, especially in cross-border fraud, money laundering, or concealing funds through blockchain.
VCCI warns about the risks of premature criminalization.
In comments on the draft, the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) states that this is a sector where the regulatory framework is still being finalized.
VCCI notes that the new Digital Technology Industry Law only defines 'digital assets,' but there is still no complete legal framework for business activities and transactions in this field.
According to VCCI, if we haven't clearly identified what constitutes 'legal' versus 'illegal' actions, criminalizing could pose significant risks for fintech businesses, exchanges, and investors.
"The description of actions in the draft is still very vague, not clearly defining specific actions, levels, and consequences," VCCI expressed their view.
We need a legal framework before moving to criminal prosecution.
VCCI draws on experiences from Singapore, Japan, and the EU, showing that countries often build a regulatory framework first, including licensing, registration, or sandbox testing mechanisms, before criminalizing clearly defined serious violations.
According to VCCI, we shouldn't broadly criminalize 'illegal' actions in a sector where the regulatory framework is incomplete.
This agency suggests only criminalizing after clear regulations are in place. Currently, actions like fraud and asset misappropriation via crypto can still be prosecuted under existing offenses, such as Article 174 on asset fraud and Article 290 on computer network use to misappropriate assets.
