The event marks a significant milestone in connecting the retail payment infrastructures of Vietnam and Singapore, supporting tourism, trade and digital economic cooperation, while delivering a faster, more convenient and secure payment experience for Singapore visitors and Vietnamese businesses.

The launch event was attended by Mr. Donald Tsang, Deputy Ambassador of Singapore to Vietnam; Mr. Pham Tien Dung, Deputy Governor of the State Bank of Vietnam; as well as senior representatives from NAPAS, Liquid Group, and VietinBank.

In recent years, cooperation between Vietnam and Singapore has continued to grow strongly across multiple sectors, particularly following the elevation of bilateral ties to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership in March 2025. Alongside trade and investment, tourism has remained a key area recording positive growth, driving increasing demand for modern, convenient, and secure digital payment solutions.

According to the Vietnam National Authority of Tourism, in the first five months of 2026, Vietnam welcomed 10.6 million international visitors, representing a 14.9% year-on-year incrase and the highest five-month total recorded in recent years. Singapore has been recognized as one of Vietnam's fastest-growing inbound tourism markets A survey conducted by Changi Airport Group (CAG) found that three out of five Singaporeans have traveled to Vietnam, and 95% of those surveyed expressed their desire to return. Singaporean travellers are also recognised as high-spending visitor segment with a strong preference for cashless payment methods.

In this context, the launch of Vietnam–Singapore cross-border QR payment connectivity not only addresses the growing demand for convenient digital payments among consumers and travellers but also supports tourism, trade and boosts the digital transformation.

Cross-border QR Payment: Fast – Convenient - Secure

The Vietnam – Singapore cross-border QR payment service is implemented based on the payment infrastructures connectivity between NAPAS and Liquid Group. Through this collaboration, users of participating payment applications in Singapore can make QR payments at VietQRGlobal acceptance points across Vietnam.

The real-time transaction processing mechanism, along with direct currency conversion between Singapore Dollars (SGD) and Vietnamese Dong (VND), enables travelers to make fast and convenient payments at retail stores, restaurants, hotels, and shopping destinations nationwide without the need for cash or currency exchange. The seamless payment experience, similar to that in their home country, enhances convenience and overall satisfaction for Singaporean visitors to Vietnam.

In the initial phase, the service is expected to reach approximately 3 million users through Liquid Group's partner network in Singapore. As Liquid Group continues to expand its payment ecosystem, the user base is expected to grow significantly, further promoting cross-border QR payments between the two countries.

With its tangible benefits for consumers, the Vietnam–Singapore cross-border QR payment service is expected to serve as a key driver of tourism and trade between the two countries in the coming years. At the same time, for Vietnamese businesses—particularly those operating in retail, services, and tourism—the solution, with its simplicity, ease of integration, and cost efficiency, enables access to a high-spending international customer segment, while optimizing operations, increasing revenue, and enhancing competitiveness in an increasingly digital economy.

Expanding a cross border payment ecosystem across the region

With the successful launch of QR payment connectivity with Singapore, NAPAS has now expanded its cross-border QR payment network to a six countries, including four markets across ASEAN..

As the operator of Vietnam's national retail payment infrastructure, NAPAS continues to invest in the development of modern and secure payment infrastructure that meets international technical and operational standards, creating a foundation for connectivity with banks, payment intermediaries, and global partners to effectively implement cross-border payment services.

Liquid Group, a Singapore-headquartered fintech specialising in cross-border digital payments and a key participant in Singapore's SGQR+ initiative, brings its RoamQR^TM network, enabling interoperability among payment applications, merchant acquirers and national QR payment networks across the Asia-Pacific region. Through RoamQR^TM, participating Singapore payment app users can pay at VietQRGlobal acceptance points in Vietnam using their familiar payment applications, supporting a seamless and secure cross-border payment experience.

Mr. Nguyen Quang Minh, CEO of NAPAS, stated:"The launch of the Vietnam–Singapore cross-border QR payment service marks a significant milestone in NAPAS's journey to expand QR payment connectivity across the region. Building on Vietnam's national retail payment infrastructure and the widely adopted VietQR standard, NAPAS will continue working closely with domestic and international partners to further expand the cross-border payment ecosystem, delivering greater convenience for consumers, travelers and businesses while supporting tourism, trade and the digital economy in line with the strategic direction of the Government of Vietnam and the State Bank of Vietnam.

Mr. Jeremy Tan, Chief Executive Officer of Liquid Group, said:

"We are delighted to partner NAPAS and VietinBank to bring Vietnam–Singapore cross-border QR payment connectivity to life. Through RoamQR^TM, our goal is to make cross-border payments simple, interoperable and trusted, so that travellers can pay overseas using the apps they already know, while merchants can serve international customers without added complexity. This launch is an important step in strengthening digital payment connectivity between Singapore and Vietnam, and we look forward to working with our partners to expand a secure and scalable two-way payment ecosystem across ASEAN."

Mr. Tran Cong Quynh Lan, Deputy General Director of VietinBank, stated: "As the settlement bank for cross-border QR payments between Vietnam and Singapore, VietinBank is committed to continuously expanding a comprehensive digital financial ecosystem for our customers. We prioritize investment in and optimization of our technology infrastructure to deliver a seamless, real-time payment experience with the highest security standards. VietinBank will work closely with partners to significantly expand the payment acceptance network, bringing VietQR closer to Singapore visitors and contributing to the promotion of tourism, trade, and digital economic connectivity between Vietnam and Singapore."

As part of the next phase of the partnership, NAPAS and its partners plan to roll out outbound QR payment services from Vietnam to Singapore in 2026, completing a two-way payment ecosystem to meet the growing demand of people and businesses in both countries.

The launch of the Vietnam–Singapore cross-border QR payment service represents the strong commitment of the parties to strengthening digital payment infrastructure connectivity between the two countries, contributing to the growth of tourism and trade and digital economic integration of the two countries across ASEAN.