Cross-border e-commerce is experiencing rapid growth, establishing itself as a vital pillar of global trade. On April 7, 2026, the Vietnam E-commerce Association (VECOM), in collaboration with Access Partnership, hosted the international conference "E-commerce: Driving Export Growth – Current Status and Solutions." The event aimed to present updated data on Vietnam's online export scale while facilitating discussions on opportunities, challenges, policies, and strategic solutions to further promote online exports, particularly for key sectors such as furniture and fashion.
The conference brought together leaders from government regulatory bodies, domestic and international organizations, and enterprises across the fields of e-commerce, the digital economy, import-export, trade promotion, and logistics.
During the event, Dr. Le Hoang Oanh, Director General of the Vietnam E-commerce and Digital Economy Agency (Ministry of Industry and Trade), highlighted that e-commerce plays a crucial role in expanding global markets, enabling small businesses to participate in international trade, optimizing costs, and leveraging the growth potential of online platforms. Furthermore, the Ministry of Industry and Trade is continuously refining the legal framework—including policies on customs, taxation, and consumer protection—alongside major initiatives such as the Law on Electronic Transactions and the National E-commerce Development Master Plan for the 2026–2030 period. these efforts are designed to foster a transparent environment aligned with international standards for cross-border e-commerce.
Dr. Le Hoang Oanh, Director General of the Vietnam E-commerce and Digital Economy Agency (Ministry of Industry and Trade), shared insights on "Policies to Promote Cross-border E-commerce."
Reflecting on 30 years of integration, Mr. Tran Thanh Hai, Deputy Director General of the Agency of Foreign Trade (Ministry of Industry and Trade), noted that Vietnam's total import-export turnover has seen impressive growth, surging from $13 billion in 1995 to approximately $930 billion in 2025—a 70-fold increase—with exports alone exceeding $475 billion. Within this landscape, cross-border e-commerce is emerging as a critical catalyst driving growth. Currently, Vietnam’s e-commerce market scale is valued at approximately $31 billion, of which the cross-border segment accounts for about $4.45 billion (representing 15–16%). Although the absolute value remains modest, a growth rate of 17–18% underscores the immense potential of this sector.
Mr. Sam Charlton, Director of Access Partnership, presented the topic "Empowered by E-commerce: Expanding Furniture and Fashion Exports in Vietnam."
From the perspective of online export support platforms, Amazon announced the launch of Amazon Global Logistics (AGL) in Vietnam to provide end-to-end logistics solutions. As shared by Mr. Darren Ong, Amazon's Director of Public Policy for Southeast Asia, these initiatives help businesses—especially micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs)—simplify export processes, reduce costs, and broaden access to international markets. Furthermore, Amazon has integrated tools such as artificial intelligence, digital advertising, and store management systems to assist businesses in optimizing operations and gradually building their brands on the global stage.
Mr. Darren Ong, Director of Public Policy for Southeast Asia at Amazon, presented on "Amazon Global Selling Initiatives to Support Vietnamese Merchants."
During the discussion session, Mr. Nguyen Phu Tien, Deputy Director General of the Department of Digital Economy and Society (Ministry of Science and Technology), emphasized the role of e-commerce in the digital economy and introduced strategies, digital economy development schemes, and business support activities. Mr. Hoang Minh Chiến, Deputy Director General of the Vietnam Trade Promotion Agency (Ministry of Industry and Trade), introduced digital transformation activities in trade promotion to support exports. Mr. Chien also highlighted that in 2026, the Agency will organize numerous programs to improve business capacity for trade promotion in the digital environment. Ms. Virginia Foote, President of AmCham Hanoi, shared profound insights regarding the difficulties of online exporting to the United States amidst the current complex landscape and noted key considerations for businesses to keep in mind.
The conference "E-commerce: Driving Export Growth – Current Status and Solutions" was held as the Law on E-commerce is set to take effect in July 2026. This legislation mandates State support for the development of cross-border e-commerce and the expansion of international markets for Vietnamese goods and services. Additionally, the National E-commerce Development Master Plan for the 2026–2030 period has outlined specific goals, tasks, and solutions to advance this sector.
Throughout 2026, the Vietnam E-commerce Association (VECOM) will continue to collaborate with various agencies and organizations to implement online export support activities. By the end of the year, the Vietnam E-commerce Support Alliance (VESA), under VECOM, is expected to organize an awards ceremony to honor businesses with outstanding achievements in this field.
*Key Activities in Cross-Border E-commerce
E-commerce in Vietnam experienced high growth from 2016 to 2020 and saw an explosive boom following the COVID-19 pandemic. Many businesses and traders have utilized online tools to find export partners through Business-to-Business (B2B) models and have progressively implemented online sales to international end-consumers (B2C). Since 2020, major B2C e-commerce platforms such as Amazon and Shopee have actively supported Vietnamese merchants in online exporting, with international payment service providers also contributing significantly to this trend.
Conversely, domestic consumer demand for online shopping from abroad has risen sharply, particularly via road express delivery from China through domestic B2C platforms like Shopee, Lazada, and TikTok Shop. Since 2023, online imports by consumers have drawn significant attention from stakeholders, including regulatory bodies, professional associations, and local enterprises.
In January 2025, the Vietnam Digital Trade project released the " Báo cáo "Việt Nam - Thương mại điện tử xuyên biên giới 2024"" report, providing an overview of global cross-border e-commerce trends and the scale of Vietnam's online exports and imports for 2024.
In December 2025, at the " Diễn đàn "Thương mại điện tử xuyên biên giới 2025""—organized by VECOM in coordination with the Vietnam E-commerce and Digital Economy Agency (iDEA) and VITV—iDEA officially announced the figures for online export (XKO) and online import (NKO) volumes for the year 2025.
Sources: Vietnam E-commerce and Digital Economy Agency (iDEA) and Vietnam Digital Trade.
Access Partnership has conducted pioneering and prominent research on Vietnam's online exports. The 2022 report, "Local Sellers, Global Consumers: Capturing E-commerce Export Opportunities in Vietnam," provided the first quantitative insights into the country's cross-border e-commerce and proposed numerous practical solutions to boost online exports.
In December 2024, VECOM collaborated with Access Partnership to organize the "Online Export Development 2024" workshop. During this event, Access Partnership released the report "Trade Transformation – E-commerce Transformation in Vietnam."
In 2025, Amazon Global Selling noted that the growth rate of e-commerce exports in Vietnam surpassed the overall export growth rate. The quantity and quality of sellers are increasing significantly, with the volume of Vietnamese products sold on the platform in 2025 rising by nearly 35% compared to 2024.
