Special rules for .bank and .insurance domains
Legal basis:
- Law on Credit Institutions 2024 (Luật Các tổ chức tín dụng 2024);
- Law on Insurance Business 2022 (Luật Kinh doanh bảo hiểm 2022);
- Circular 06/2023/TT-NHNN;
- fTLD Registry Services;
- ICANN.
- Under Decision No. 4567/QD-VBPL dated 01/06/2026 issuing the Legal Compliance Framework of Công ty Cổ phần Giải pháp Công nghệ và Phần mềm Phổ Tuệ.
PART I – OVERVIEW AND SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS
Article 1. Characteristics and requirements of .BANK and .INSURANCE
1.1. The .BANK and .INSURANCE domains are highly regulated gTLDs administered by fTLD Registry Services, LLC. They are issued only to properly licensed financial and insurance institutions.
1.2. To register .BANK, the Customer must be:
(a) Commercial banks licensed by the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV);
(b) Licensed credit institutions (joint-venture banks, wholly foreign-owned banks, foreign bank branches);
(c) A licensed microfinance institution;
(d) Verified by fTLD through the verification service of the ABA (American Bankers Association) or a global verification partner.
1.3. To register .INSURANCE, the Customer must be:
(a) Insurance companies licensed by Vietnam's Ministry of Finance;
(b) Branches of foreign insurance companies licensed to operate in Vietnam;
(c) Verified by VerifiedAccredited (fTLD's verification partner for .INSURANCE).
Article 2. Special security requirements
2.1. .BANK and .INSURANCE domains must meet the highest security standards:
Required:
- DNSSEC (DNS Security Extensions) — digital signing of the entire DNS zone;
- HTTPS is mandatory, with an EV (Extended Validation) SSL certificate from an fTLD-recognized CA;
- Email security: DMARC (policy: reject), SPF and DKIM are mandatory;
- Multi-factor authentication (MFA) for domain management access;
- Registry lock (domain lock) to prevent unauthorized transfer.
Periodic checks:
- Annual compliance review by the fTLD Registry;
- A security audit report on request;
- Update the organization's verification details whenever the licence changes.
Article 3. Special registration process
3.1. The .BANK/.INSURANCE registration process differs from that for ordinary domains:
- Step 1: HiTechCloud receives the request and carries out an initial eligibility check;
- Step 2: The Customer submits a complete application file (credit institution/insurance license, identification documents of the legal representative, confirmation letter from the regulator);
- Step 3: HiTechCloud submits the application to the fTLD registry for independent verification;
- Step 4: fTLD verifies within 5–15 business days;
- Step 5: Once approved, HiTechCloud activates the domain and configures DNSSEC;
- Step 6: The customer configures EV SSL, DMARC, SPF and DKIM per the technical instructions.
3.2. Total processing time: 3–6 weeks from receipt of a complete application.
3.3. Registration fees for .BANK and .INSURANCE are significantly higher than for ordinary domains because of the complex verification requirements. Quote on request.
Article 4. The registrant's ongoing obligations
4.1. Throughout the period it holds a .BANK/.INSURANCE domain, the registrant must:
(a) Maintain a valid operating licence from the Vietnamese regulator;
(b) Notify HiTechCloud immediately if the licence is revoked, suspended or changed;
(c) Maintain the mandatory technical security measures set out in Article 2;
(d) Take part in the fTLD registry's annual compliance review;
(e) Do not transfer the domain to an ineligible organization.
4.2. A .BANK/.INSURANCE domain will be revoked immediately if:
(a) The organization loses its operating license;
(b) Failure to meet fTLD compliance verification requirements;
(c) Use for fraudulent or unlawful purposes is discovered;
(d) Failure to renew the domain after the grace period.
