Vietnam considers blanket ban on import of cryptocurrency mining rigs

Vietnam’s Finance Ministry wants a complete ban on the import of cryptocurrency mining rigs, saying many of them are being used to launch new virtual currencies and forms of payment.

Such operations are very difficult to regulate, the ministry says.

The proposal for a blanket ban was made on Monday, with the ministry saying that the rigs were being used to try and create new currencies and forms of payment that were difficult to regulate.

It referred to the fraud that happened in Saigon in April, when 32,000 people lost VND1.5 trillion after investing in a company mining iFan and Pincoin coins.

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc had earlier called for strict management of all activities involving cryptocurrencies after many companies began trying to attract people into investing in new cryptocurrency ventures – Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs).

As of April 2018, Vietnam had imported more than 6,300 crypto currency mining rigs, with 4,300 machines going to Hanoi and 2,009 to Saigon.

In 2017, more than 9,300 cryptocurrency mining rigs were imported. Of these, 2,300 went to Hanoi, around 7,000 to Saigon, and the rest to Da Nang, the ministry said.

Cryptocurrency is illegal in Vietnam.