Regulations and Raids, or the Precarious Place of Gold Shops in Vietnam

Abstract

In 2014, police raided a gold shop in Ho Chi Minh City and confiscated US dollars, Thai baht, and more than 500 SJC gold bars. The public outcry following the raid underscores the contentious reaction to a 2012 government decree prohibiting gold shops from exchanging foreign currency and gold bars. This chapter examines official justifications for the raid as well as popular perceptions as a means of assessing the vulnerability of gold traders in Vietnam’s shifting monetary landscape.