Vietnam’s Da Nang expands digital asset conversion to airports, golf courses, resorts

After more than a year under a regulatory sandbox, Basal Pay has become the first application in Vietnam to receive approval for a controlled trial supporting the conversion of digital assets into fiat currency.

The application was approved for pilot operation in August 2025.

Initially, users could convert USDT into VND at only three locations: the Da Nang Software Park, Da Nang Software Park No. 2, and the Da Nang Innovation Startup Support Center.

Following a year of operation, the pilot’s coverage has expanded to 10 key tourism areas, spanning Da Nang International Airport, the Hai Chau downtown area, the An Hai-My Khe-Ngu Hanh Son coastal corridor, Hoi An, and Ba Na Hills.

The expansion also includes major golf courses and resort destinations, such as Legend Danang Golf Resort, Ba Na Hills Golf Club, Montgomerie Links Vietnam, Hoiana Resort & Golf, and Vinpearl Golf Nam Hoi An.

Le Son Phong, deputy director of the Da Nang Department of Science and Technology, said the municipal People’s Committee had approved six sandbox projects to date.

Basal Pay, developed by AlphaTrue Solutions JSC, was the first model to receive approval and has been operating under the framework for the longest period.

More than a year of pilot operation has shown that 100 percent of transactions conducted through the Basal Pay platform complied with anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing requirements, in line with recommendations from the Financial Action Task Force and international standards.

These compliance results provided the basis for expanding the pilot from three locations to 10 key tourism areas, he said.

“The results demonstrate that a controlled sandbox mechanism can be expanded incrementally based on actual performance and businesses’ compliance capabilities,” Phong said.

He added that the results would also support the department’s efforts to advise the city on approving further pilot models, with potential expansion into stablecoins – cryptocurrencies pegged to fiat currencies – as well as tourism finance and cross-border settlement.

Tourists can convert up to 30,000 USDT monthly

John Smith, an American digital nomad who has lived in several Asian cities, said he tends to choose destinations where cryptocurrency can be converted conveniently to support his daily spending and living expenses.

Having used digital assets for years, Smith said that in Thailand, he could convert cryptocurrency into Thai baht through licensed providers and then spend the money through electronic payment systems.

Da Nang’s model follows a similar approach.

To prevent money laundering and maintain transaction oversight, users are not permitted to pay directly for goods and services with cryptocurrency.

Instead, they must convert their digital assets into Vietnamese dong before spending the money.

“Three months ago, I moved from Thailand to Hoi An,” he shared.

“Every week, I would travel to downtown Da Nang City to convert USDT into VND.

“Now that there are more authorized conversion locations, it is much more convenient to do so in Hoi An as well.”

Expanding the number of conversion points would make it easier for tourists holding digital assets to access local payment methods, potentially encouraging greater spending and shopping, Smith added.

Tran Huyen Dinh, CEO of AlphaTrue Solutions, said the platform had attracted some 10,000 registered accounts and recorded more than 15,000 transactions during its first year under the sandbox framework.

The total value of USDT converted into Vietnamese dong at the three original locations exceeded US$100,000.

“We currently limit conversions to less than 1,000 USDT per transaction and 30,000 USDT per account per month,” Dinh said.