The shift of the digital economy from centralized models to decentralized structures has placed new requirements on how assets are defined, managed and transacted. At the heart of this revolution is the separation between two fundamental but decisive concepts: Fungible Token and Non-fungible Token (NFT). Although both are based on decentralized ledger technology, their economic nature and technical structure represent two different extremes of ownership and value. This report, conducted by the research team at Tan Phat Digital, delves into the analysis of core mechanisms, the evolution of token standards, real asset (RWA) tokenization trends and especially the latest legal framework in Vietnam for the period 2025-2026.
The Nature and Economic Characteristics of Fungibility
Fungibility is a fundamental property of exchange-for-value systems, allowing units of assets to be interchanged without changing the value or nature of the transaction. An asset is considered fungible when any unit of it is equivalent to any other unit of the same type in both value and function. In real life, cash, oil or gold are typical examples; A 100,000 VND note has the exact same value as another 100,000 VND note, regardless of its series number or circulation history.
In the digital space, fungibility allows for the simplification of financial and commercial transactions. The system does not need to identify each specific unit but only needs to manage the total quantity. This facilitates the storage of value, payments and provides high liquidity to commodity and equity markets. Cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin or Ethereum (ETH) are good examples of fungible tokens, where one unit is always equal to another unit of the same type ($1 \text{ BTC} = 1 \text{ BTC}$).
In contrast, non-fungibility (non-fungibility) represents the uniqueness and individuality of the asset. Each irreplaceable item has unique properties that prevent it from being directly swapped with another item of the same type and still retain its value. A painting by the famous artist Mona Lisa, a house at a specific address, or an airline ticket with the passenger's name and seat number are irreplaceable assets. This uniqueness creates value based on the rarity, ownership history and intrinsic properties of the asset itself rather than based on mass supply and demand.
Comparing the core characteristics of digital assets
To help mobile users easily follow, Tan Phat Digital summarizes the difference between FT and NFT as follows:
Fungibility:FT is fungible 1-1 outright; NFTs are unique and cannot be directly replaced.
Value: FTs are identical across all units; NFTs have unique values for each unit based on their own characteristics.
Divisibility: FTs are divisible (e.g. $0.000001 \text{BTC}$); NFTs are usually indivisible.
Identification basis: FTs are based on quantity; NFT is based on a unique identifier (Token ID).
Data storage: FT stores account balances (Balances); NFTs store ownership and metadata (Metadata).
Liquidity: FTs are very liquid thanks to the homogeneous market; NFTs have lower liquidity, depending on the demand for each specific item.
Technical Architecture and Smart Contract Storage Model
The difference between FT and NFT does not stop at the economic concept but also lies deep in the source code structure of smart contracts. On the Ethereum network and EVM compatible chains, managing these types of tokens requires completely different data storage methods to optimize gas costs and processing performance.
For fungible tokens (like the ERC-20 standard), the main data structure is a mapping table between wallet addresses and available balances. The smart contract simply remembers that wallet A owns $X$ units. When a transaction takes place, the system simply performs arithmetic addition and subtraction calculations on these variables. This logic allows FT transactions to take place at low cost because the amount of data that needs to be updated on the blockchain is minimal.
In contrast, the architecture of NFTs (like the ERC-721 standard) is much more complex. Instead of storing balances, the smart contract must manage a mapping table between each unique Token ID and the current owner's wallet address. In addition, each NFT also comes with a metadata path (URI) that points to detailed information such as images, technical properties or history of the asset.
Storage structure in Solidity for FT and NFT
In the Solidity programming language, this difference is clearly expressed through state variables:
FT (ERC-20):
mapping(address => uint256) private _balances;- The system only cares about the total amount an address holds.NFT (ERC-721):
mapping(uint256 => address) private _owners;- The system keeps track of the owners of each specific ID.
Increase in data complexity data makes NFT transactions typically more costly in terms of network resources than FTs. To solve this problem, new standards such as ERC-1155 have emerged, allowing management of both fungible and non-fungible tokens in the same smart contract, helping to reduce the number of transactions and save on gas fees through a bulk transfer mechanism.
The Evolution of Token Standards to 2026
By 2026, the token ecosystem has evolved far beyond initial basic standards. The complex needs of interoperability, fractional ownership, and asset dynamism have driven the emergence of groundbreaking technical standards, which Tan Phat Digital summarizes below.
ERC-1155: Multi-Token Standard
ERC-1155 is designed to overcome the limitations of ERC-20 and ERC-721 by way that allows a single smart contract to represent a multitude of different token types. This is especially useful in the video game (GameFi) sector, where users can own both in-game currency and rare items such as weapons or costumes.
Key benefits of ERC-1155 include:
Gas Efficiency: Allows the transfer of many different types of tokens in a single transaction instead of having to do dozens of separate transactions retail.
Flexibility:A token ID can be configured to function as an NFT or an FT depending on the developer's needs.
Storage optimization: Minimizes on-chain data bloat by bundling asset management logic.
ERC-6551: Token Binding Account (Token Bound Accounts - TBA)
One of the most important advances in 2025-2026 is the explosion of ERC-6551. This standard allows each NFT to own a separate Ethereum wallet address, transforming the NFT from a static asset into an autonomous entity. With ERC-6551, an NFT can:
Own other assets:A game character can "carry" ERC-20 tokens or other NFTs in his or her own digital "backpack".
Interact with dApps: NFTs can sign transactions, participate in governance voting (DAO), or register sign the ENS domain independently of the owner's wallet.
History retention: Every interaction is recorded in the transaction history of the asset itself, creating a transparent record of usage and accumulated value.
Real Asset Market (RWA) and the Rise of Utility NFTs
2024-2025 marking a strong shift of capital flows from speculative NFTs to NFTs with high practical value, especially in the field of real estate tokenization (Real World Assets - RWA). Putting tangible assets such as real estate, government bonds and gold on the blockchain not only increases liquidity but also democratizes investment opportunities for all walks of life.
Tokenization of Real Estate and Fractional Ownership
NFT technology allows dividing a building or a luxury apartment into thousands of small pieces. Each NFT represents a portion of the value of a real asset, allowing investors with small capital to participate.
The benefits of RWA in the real estate sector include:
Liquidity:Turn fixed assets into tradable units on a decentralized exchange, helping to shorten the capital recovery time from months to seconds.
Universal access demand: Eliminate geographical barriers and cross-border paperwork, helping investors to buy homes anywhere with just one e-wallet.
Transparency: Ownership history and rental income are permanently recorded on the chain, helping to minimize the risk of legal disputes and fraud.
Low cost: Eliminate intermediaries such as brokers and lawyers for each transaction is small, thereby increasing the net profit for investors.
Involvement of Financial Institutions
By October 2025, the total value of real assets tokenized on-chain has reached a record level of about 33 billion USD. Large financial institutions such as BlackRock or Ondo Finance have begun offering US Treasury bond products in token form. This trend creates a highly stable asset class, reducing the inherent volatility of the cryptocurrency market.
Legal Framework in Vietnam: Digital Technology Industry Law 2025
One of the most important developments for the Vietnamese blockchain community is the National Assembly's passage of the Digital Technology Industry Law 2025 (effective from January 1, 2026). This is the first time digital assets and cryptoassets have been put into law, ending a years-long legal gray zone period.
Official Definition of Cryptoassets
According to guiding documents and Resolution 05/2025/NQ-CP, Vietnamese law has provided clear definitions:
Digital Assets: Considered as a type of asset according to the provisions of the Civil Code, existing in the form of digital data and authenticated by digital technology.
Crypto Assets: Is a subset of digital assets, using encryption technology (blockchain) to authenticate transactions created, stored and transferred. Cryptographic assets are clearly defined as excluding securities and digital forms of fiat currencies that have specialized laws governing them.
According to experts at Tan Phat Digital, recognizing crypto assets as "assets" is extremely important for the protection of ownership rights. From January 1, 2026, acts of theft and fraudulent appropriation of NFTs or cryptocurrencies will have a full legal basis for criminal prosecution.
Testing Mechanism (Sandbox) for VASP Enterprises
Vietnam also launches a 5-year pilot program (2025-2030) for the cryptographic asset market. Organizations providing virtual asset services (VASP) must meet strict conditions:
Capital structure:At least 65% of charter capital must be contributed by organizations, of which at least 35% must be from commercial banks, securities companies or large technology enterprises.
Institutional cooperation: Requires the participation of institutions traditional finance to ensure anti-money laundering (AML) compliance.
Subject limits: During the pilot phase, the issuance of real-asset-based crypto assets may be restricted to foreign investors to ensure national financial security.
The Impact of AI and the GameFi Paradigm Shift
The convergence between AI and NFTs is redefining redefine user experience. NFTs in 2026 have become dynamic entities (Dynamic NFTs) capable of changing state based on real-world data or AI algorithms.
Evolution from Play-to-Earn to Play-and-Earn
The blockchain gaming industry has strongly shifted to the Play-and-Earn (P&E) model to ensure sustainability. Details of the differences between the two game generations are listed by Tan Phat Digital as follows:
Main purpose: The 2021-2022 period (P2E) focuses on making money quickly; period 2025-2026 (P&E) focuses on true entertainment.
Graphics: Older generations are often simple (2D/Pixel); The new generation uses high-quality and cinematic 3D graphics.
Economic mechanism: P2E faces high inflation; P&E aims for balance through burning and staking mechanisms.
Compatibility: Previously assets were locked within a game; can now switch between metaverses thanks to ERC-6551.
The Role of AI: AI now plays a core role in personalizing experiences and balancing the economy, something that the older generation almost did not have.
Identity Governance and Intellectual Property Rights in the Digital Age
NFT is becoming the most powerful tool for identity authentication and copy protection rights. By 2026, non-transferable NFTs (Soulbound Tokens) are expected to become the standard for personal documents such as driver's licenses or academic certificates.
NFTs and Copyright Protection
For creators, NFTs solve the problem of controlling rights in cyberspace. Through smart contracts, artists can automatically receive royalties for each time the work is resold. This completely eliminates the dependence on intermediaries.
In the music and video sector, major brands have proven that NFTs can be used to release exclusive content with real-life perks. This is the perfect combination of digital and physical (phygital) values, helping to strengthen brand engagement.
Identity Security Forecast 2026
As AI agents begin to conduct transactions on behalf of humans, managing their identities becomes a top challenge. By 2026, every AI agent will need a cryptographic identifier implemented via NFT to ensure every action is traceable. NFTs will serve as the key to authenticating trust in machine-to-machine (M2M) communication.
Analysis of Risk and Liquidity of Digital Assets
Despite the huge potential, investors need to be aware of the risks, especially the difference in liquidity that Tan Phat Digital analyzes below.
The Liquidity Risk of NFTs vs. FT
Fungible tokens (FT) benefit from unified markets, allowing for near-instant transactions. In contrast, NFTs have low liquidity due to their uniqueness. Selling an NFT requires finding a specific buyer who appreciates the attributes of the item itself.
Statistics show that during market downturns, NFT mortgage loan trading volume can decline extremely sharply. The average default rate for NFT-backed loans ranges from 8% to 12%, requiring lenders to apply conservative loan-to-value (LTV) ratios.
Fractionalization Solutions and Liquidity Protocols
To solve this problem, Fractionalization protocols have emerged, allowing a high-value NFT to be broken down into millions of tokens ERC-20. However, sharding also brings certain risks:
Smart Contract Risk: Vulnerabilities in the sharding protocol can lead to the loss of assets.
Ownership Ambiguity: Holders of shards may not have clear legal ownership of the underlying real assets.
Ironymicity legacy:If the original NFT has no real demand, its shards will also face a lack of buyers.
Strategic Vision
The split between Fungible and Non-fungible Tokens reflects two fundamental needs: an efficient medium of exchange and authentication of exclusive ownership. By 2026, the intersection between these two asset classes will deepen through new standards and the integration of artificial intelligence.
Vietnam is facing a great opportunity to become a regional blockchain center with the Digital Technology Industry Law 2025. Establishing a transparent legal corridor will encourage the tokenization of real assets, unlocking frozen economic resources.
Tan Phat Digital believes that understanding the nature and shifting trends of these tokens is the key to successfully positioning in the ongoing 4.0 industrial revolution. The future of digital assets lies not only in their financial value but also in the ability to transparently and optimize the entire global ownership system.
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