From cash society to digitalisation: five years of evolution of payment reform in Vietnam

Vietnam's payment system has undergone a rapid digital transformation over the past five years, gradually shifting from a highly cash-dependent society to a digital payment-led economy. This evolution reflects both global fintech trends and Vietnam's unique market adaptability. The following analyses this transformation in five dimensions:

  1. Policy-driven infrastructure upgrades
  • The Cashless Payment Development Programme (2016-2020), implemented by the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV), has established a key institutional framework
  • Launch of QR code payment interoperability standard (Napas) breaks down payment silos
  • e-KYC norms make account opening more efficient 300%
  • Non-cash transaction volumes grew at an average annual rate of 85% (SBV2021 data)

  1. Localised innovative models emerge
  • MoMo Wallet penetrates 6 million MSMEs with 'hyperlocalisation' strategy
  • ZaloPay relies on social platform to achieve user fission, monthly activity exceeds 30 million
  • GrabPay turns travel scene into financial portal, takes 35% share of taxi payments

  1. Frog Hopping in Rural Markets

  1. Frog Hopping in Rural Markets
  • The rapid rollout of the agent banking model (Banking Agent) has led to a jump in digital payment coverage in Vietnam's rural areas from 121 TP3T in 2018 to 671 TP3T in 2022 (World Bank data). Post offices and kiosks have become financial service nodes, solving the last-mile challenge.
  • Voice payment technologyThe popularity of: targeting the middle-aged and elderly population with low literacy rates, ViettelPay and others have introduced dialectal voice confirmation, with significant growth in transaction volumes (2,30% YoY in 2021).
  • Digitisation of agricultural supply chain financeFor example, TPBank cooperated with a coffee co-operative to achieve automatic settlement of receipts and payments through blockchain traceability, reducing intermediate losses by up to TP3T.

  1. Regional integration of cross-border payments
  • ASEAN Quick Response Code standard docking: Vietnam interconnects with Thailand and Malaysia to realise QR codes, cross-border scanning transactions to reach US$470 million by 2022 (Napas statistics).
  • The double-edged sword effect of China's technology export: WeChat Pay/Alipay penetration through China-Vietnam border trade (42% of border trade settlement in Lang Son province), but local platforms are competing for the market with lower rates.

  1. Deep shifts in patterns of social behaviour
  • Cash/MoMo dichotomy phenomenon: 70% households use both cash and e-wallets even in the West Plains where ethnic minorities live (UNDP research), reflecting transitional characteristics.
  • Generation Z leads the change: 18