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The e-Conomy SEA 2023 report showed that Viet Nam was the fastest-growing digital economy in ASEAN with impressive growth of 20 percent.

Measured by gross merchandise value (GMV), the country has the potential to become the second-largest digital market in the region by 2030, just after Indonesia. HSBC expects the expansion to be led by a rapidly developing e-commerce ecosystem, supported by a rising consumer base.

The bank said, but it is not just the demographic tailwinds–Viet Nam's rapid rise in internet users also helps expand its digital market.

Almost 80 percent of Viet Nam's population now use the internet, thanks to smartphone ownership more than doubling from a decade ago.

In accordance with the National Digital Transformation Program through 2025 with a vision to 2030, Viet Nam aims to build the three pillars of digital government, digital economy, and digital society.

The government has correspondingly laid out a number of ambitious targets in recent years, including handling all administrative procedure applications online by 2030.

The national strategy opens up opportunities in a wide range of sectors. In particular, digital literacy is relatively low among the rural population and in the agricultural sector.

While state-led initiatives to drive rural digitalization have spurred progress in building a digital economy, it is important to note that private businesses can also play a role in accelerating the transition, highlighted HSBC.

According to the bank, digitalization brings both opportunities and challenges to Viet Nam. In order to leverage its favorable demographics and achieve its digital ambitions, investments need to be channeled into not just new areas such as artificial intelligence (AI), but also foundational areas such as digital education and traditional infrastructure./.