In a step toward building a digital ecosystem, Vietnam has announced the deployment of NDAChain, its national blockchain platform.
Developed by the National Data Association and operated by the Data Innovation and Exploitation Center (under the National Data Center, Ministry of Public Security), NDAChain is positioned as the foundational layer of data verification for government and private sector systems.
NDAChain addresses challenges of centralized data models such as vulnerability to cyberattacks, poor scalability, and limited global integration by offering a “decentralized layer of trust for critical national systems, including e-government, finance, healthcare, logistics, and education.”
Mr. Nguyen Huy, Head of Technology at the National Data Association:
“Vietnam has chosen a hybrid data architecture that blends centralized and decentralized components. NDAChain acts as a protective layer for the nation’s live data, critical to our digital society and economy.”
With a population of over 100 million and a ongoing digital transformation, Vietnam is generating data at steady rates.
The National Data Center is designed to be the “central repository for citizen and national data.”
However, protecting this data from “forgery, leakage, and misuse demands a next-generation layer of verification.”
Blockchain, known for its immutability, transparency, and decentralized nature, provides a suitable “mechanism for authenticating and tracing data origin especially in high-stakes, cross-sectoral interactions.”
NDAChain is a Layer 1 permissioned blockchain “featuring a consortium of 49 public-private validator nodes, operated by state agencies and major enterprises such as the National Data Center, Ministry of Public Security, SunGroup, Zalo, Masan, MISA, Sovico, and VNVC.”
Each validator node “includes: A distributed ledger for transparent transaction records; Smart contracts for automating processes; Identity verification modules integrated with Vietnam’s VNeID and other national identity systems.”
The entire platform runs on “a Proof-of-Authority (PoA) consensus protocol, enhanced with Zero-Knowledge Proof (ZKP) for security and capable of processing up to 3,600 transactions per second, with low latency and high scalability.”
Beyond its use in digital government, NDAChain powers NDA DID, a decentralized identity solution that “enables citizens to verify the identity of counterparties during transactions, service access, or digital contract signing.”
Through the NDAKey application, users can “verify identities in seconds – helping prevent scams and impersonation.”
In addition, NDAChain is integrated with NDATrace, Vietnam’s national platform for “product identification, authentication, and traceability.”
Each product is issued “a unique identifier (UID), compliant with GS1 standards and compatible with the EU’s EBSI system.”
This enables Vietnamese businesses to “join global supply chains and build consumer trust with verified product origin.”
By the end of 2025, NDAChain will be integrated into the National Data Center and “expanded to local governments and universities by 2026.”
The next phase will focus on “workforce development, international collaboration, and building L2 applications for various sectors.”
Thanks to its open architecture and pro-integration policies, NDAChain is not only a “national technology infrastructure but also a launchpad for startups, tech firms, and private organizations to develop digital services.”
These may include “identity wallets, anti-counterfeit solutions, traceability platforms, or digital notarization services across verticals.”
More than 50 countries have reportedly launched national blockchain platforms, including BSN (China), EBSI (EU), and Klaytn (South Korea). Vietnam’s approach stands out by “combining public-private collaboration, adherence to international standards (W3C DID, GDPR), and integration with national data systems, reflecting a vision for data infrastructure and digital economic development.”
