Trends, opportunities and risk management in digital assets

The Viet Nam Blockchain and Digital Assets Association (VBA), in cooperation with 1Matrix, Tether Financial Group and the Vietnam Academy of Blockchain and AI Innovation(ABAII), organised a seminar entitled “Trends, Opportunities and Risk Management in Digital Assets”.

In her opening remarks, Nguyen Van Hien, Vice President and Secretary-General of the VBA, said that Viet Nam’s legal framework for digital assets is being developed rapidly. To stay ahead of the market’s expected surge in growth, the capabilities of market participants must also evolve at a corresponding pace.

She also added that proactively conducting research and strengthening expertise not only helps businesses and investors better understand the technology and fully identify risks, but is also a prerequisite for adapting to new requirements related to compliance, governance and market operations.

Tokenised real-world assets (RWAs) are emerging as one of the blockchain industry’s most promising trends, with an estimated market value of up to 46.2 trillion USD by 2035, according to a report by BCG.

Speaking at the seminar, Nghiem Minh Hoang, Strategy Director of 1Matrix and Fintech Application Specialist at VBA, said blockchain technology enables the digitisation of many traditional assets—including gold, bonds, real estate and commodities—thereby expanding accessibility and improving liquidity.

Beyond bridging traditional financial markets with digital infrastructure, this model also creates opportunities for broader access to large-scale assets previously available only to institutional investors, while enhancing liquidity and expanding fundraising capacity for businesses.

Discussing risk management, Nguyen Van Chinh, Chairman of DDC Holdings, observed that crypto assets are undergoing rapid transformation, reflecting more than a decade of growth and market consolidation. While the 2016–2018 period was driven by the wave of Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs), the 2020–2021 cycle witnessed the explosive rise of decentralised finance (DeFi), non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and various decentralised financial models.

In the current phase, the market is gradually maturing, with increasingly visible participation from financial institutions, investment funds and major technology corporations, alongside new financial infrastructure linked to the development of stablecoins and RWAs.

Rather than focusing on short-term trends, capital flows are increasingly shifting towards models capable of generating real value, offering practical applications and responding to actual economic demand. Investors therefore need to strengthen their ability to assess projects, manage risks and adapt to changes in both technology and regulatory policy.

Khuat Bich Thuy, Legal and Licensing Director at Tether Viet Nam, assessed that the global digital asset market is entering a phase of comprehensive regulation and stricter enforcement.

As a result, valuing a project today can no longer rely solely on price appreciation potential. Investors should instead assess four key factors: licensing status, asset disclosure and verification, technology risk-control and security systems, and the quality of the management team.

From a technological perspective, Le Anh Quoc, Technology Specialist at VBA, noted that the greatest difference between retail investors and professional investment funds lies in project evaluation methodology. While many individual investors tend to focus on price fluctuations and short-term information, professional institutions spend considerably more time assessing technology, business models, development teams and the ability to generate real value.

Meanwhile, Do Anh Tuan, Training Director at RWA Edu, stated that before entering the digital asset market, investors need to clearly define their risk appetite and build a solid foundation of knowledge.