Vietnam’s digital economy is rapidly emerging as one of the country’s most important growth engines. At the forum “Developing the Digital Economy: Opportunities and Challenges in a New Era” held on 21 November by Kinh tế & Đô thị Newspaper, experts emphasized that improving the legal framework, expanding digital infrastructure, and encouraging stronger enterprise participation in digital transformation are decisive requirements for Vietnam to break through in the coming decade. With a young population, one of the highest internet usage rates in the region, and well-developed telecommunications infrastructure, Vietnam has a substantial opportunity to achieve the targets set in Resolution 57-NQ/TW and Decision 411/QĐ-TTg, which require the digital economy to contribute 20% of GDP by 2025 and 30% by 2030.

Throughout the forum, delegates analyzed key drivers shaping Vietnam’s digital transformation. According to Mr. Nguyen Phu Tien, Deputy Director General of the Department of Digital Economy and Society (Ministry of Science and Technology), digital technologies are becoming fundamental catalysts for productivity, product quality, and competitive capacity. He stressed the need for closer collaboration between enterprises and research institutions in foundational technological fields such as artificial intelligence (AI), big data, cloud computing, and the Internet of Things (IoT), which can generate solutions with high application value.

Echoing this view, Mr. Nguyen Huu Tuan, Director of the Center for E-commerce and Digital Technology Development (Ministry of Industry and Trade), noted that e-commerce continues to lead corporate digital transformation thanks to its strong growth rate, market expansion capability, and ability to help small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) standardize operations. Digital payments, digital logistics, and interoperable data systems are becoming essential foundations for e-commerce to grow sustainably in the years ahead.

From the perspective of public governance, Dr. Nguyen Duc Kien – former Deputy Head of the National Assembly’s Economic Committee – emphasized the need for urban administrations to take the lead in building digital infrastructure, open data systems, and innovation-friendly policies. He highlighted the importance of standardizing financial transactions, calling on banks to help household businesses install POS machines and recognize POS receipts as valid financial documents. Transparent digital transactions, he argued, would create valuable “digital assets” in the form of financial data that support evidence-based policy-making and allow credit institutions to apply AI-driven credit scoring, thereby improving access to capital for both individuals and enterprises.

On international integration, Associate Professor Dr. Nguyen Thuong Lang of the National Economics University explained that the digital economy is opening new development space for Vietnam by enhancing competitiveness, attracting high-quality investment, and enabling deeper participation in global value chains. According to him, a unified national data infrastructure and a mature digital legal framework are critical for Vietnamese businesses to align with global standards and maintain competitiveness.

However, the greatest challenge lies within the business community itself. Dr. Mac Quoc Anh – Vice Chairman and General Secretary of the Hanoi SME Association – revealed that 62% of SMEs lack financial resources for digital transformation, and 54% do not have a dedicated IT department. At the same time, businesses must comply with an increasing number of requirements such as e-invoices, cybersecurity standards, ESG reporting, the EU’s CBAM mechanism, and financial risk management. He emphasized that SMEs can only keep pace with digital transformation when they receive comprehensive support spanning policy, technology, finance, and human capital development. To address this, he proposed that Hanoi consider establishing a Digital Transformation Support Fund with preferential interest rates between 0% and 3%, while also accelerating sandbox mechanisms for AI, Fintech, and Blockchain to reduce legal risks and shorten commercialization timelines.

Representatives from technology companies such as Dolphin, Sapo, NetSpace, IGNITE, NextFarm, and Sorimachi Vietnam shared practical experiences in digitizing management processes, scaling e-commerce ecosystems, and applying digital technologies to agriculture and logistics. Experts at the forum agreed that advancing the digital legal framework, building robust digital financial infrastructure, and promoting enterprise participation in digital transformation are the critical pillars that will enable Vietnam’s digital economy to accelerate and play a stronger role in long-term national growth.