Dunamu, operator of South Korea’s largest cryptocurrency platform Upbit, will join forces with Vietnam’s state-controlled Military Bank to launch the Southeast Asian nation’s first domestic digital asset exchange.

The companies signed a memorandum of understanding on Tuesday at a business forum in Seoul attended by corporate leaders from both countries.

“The partnership is especially significant as Dunamu is exporting Korea’s exchange model and technology as part of an overseas state-led initiative,” a company official said.

Military Bank, or MB Bank, is a joint-stock commercial lender founded in 1994 as a subsidiary of the Ministry of National Defence. It ranks among Vietnam’s five largest banks, serving 33 million customers with total assets nearing $50 billion.

 Under the deal, Dunamu will serve as MB Bank’s key strategic partner, sharing its technology and infrastructure while advising on regulatory compliance, investor protection and talent development.

The agreement comes as Vietnam moves to bring digital assets under formal oversight. In July, the Law on Digital Technology Industry was passed to legalize them and establish a regulated market.

Dunamu has not only transformed Upbit into Korea's top exchange, but has helped shape Korea’s broader crypto ecosystem and regulatory landscape, likely a key reason why the Vietnamese government tapped it as a partner. In July, Dunamu Vice Chair and co-founder Kim Hyoung-nyon met Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, pledging the company’s commitment to cooperation in Vietnam’s digital economy.

Upbit is the world’s third-largest crypto exchange, handling more than $1.1 trillion in trades and managing assets of over 15.3 trillion won ($11 billion).

“Vietnam has potential with more than 20 million virtual asset holders, over $800 billion in trading volume and the world’s fifth-largest inflow of blockchain-based assets,” Dunamu CEO Oh Kyoung-suk said. “When this growth potential meets the Upbit model, it will be a chance to build not just an exchange but Vietnam’s entire digital financial infrastructure on a foundation of trust.”

MB Bank Chair Luu Trung Thai added, “MB and Upbit will work together as trusted partners to advance Vietnam’s digital finance market.”