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Marketplace (e-commerce marketplace)
November 01, 2026 A marketplace (e-commerce marketplace) is an online platform where many sellers list products and buyers order directly on the platform, such as Shopee, Lazada or TikTok Shop. Vietnam’s 2025 E-commerce Law calls this an “intermediary e-commerce platform”.
What is a marketplace?
Cambridge Dictionary defines the online sense of marketplace as a website designed for people to buy and sell things (Cambridge Dictionary, marketplace, accessed November 2026). The difference from a brand’s own online store: on a marketplace, the operator does not sell itself but lets other sellers open shops, while the platform handles display, payment and shipping and charges fees.
If you were looking for Facebook Marketplace, that is the buy-and-sell section of Facebook. This page covers marketplace in the e-commerce sense.
Marketplaces under Vietnam’s Law No. 122/2025/QH15
Vietnam’s E-commerce Law No. 122/2025/QH15 took effect on July 1, 2026. Article 3 splits e-commerce platforms into 4 types (Vietnam Government Gazette, Law No. 122/2025/QH15, published January 2026):
| Platform type | Legal definition | Plain example |
|---|---|---|
| Direct business | Set up by an organization or individual to sell its own goods or services | A brand’s own online store |
| Intermediary | Lets other organizations or individuals register accounts to present and sell goods on the platform itself | A marketplace |
| Social network conducting e-commerce | A social network with at least one of: online messaging, online ordering, livestream selling | A social network with shops and an order button |
| Integrated | Lets other e-commerce platforms be integrated into it | A super app bundling several platforms |
What marketplaces and sellers must do
Under Article 17, an intermediary platform operator must verify a seller’s identity before allowing sales, review product listings before they go live, and keep posted product information accessible for at least 1 year. A platform with online ordering must also take back goods that do not match what the seller announced, let buyers review sellers and display those reviews in full, notify a seller at least 5 days before suspending or restricting the account (unless a state authority requests it), and keep contract data accessible for at least 3 years.
Under Article 21, sellers on a platform with online ordering must provide identity information for verification, use only their own payment account, and submit proof of eligibility before selling goods in conditional business lines.
Selling on a marketplace vs. your own website
| Marketplace | Own website | |
|---|---|---|
| Audience | Shoppers already searching on the platform | You drive your own traffic |
| Costs | Platform fees per order | Hosting, payment gateway and shipping on you |
| Customer data | Mostly held by the platform | Yours |
| Advertising | Shopee Ads, TikTok GMV Max inside the platform | Google Ads, Meta, TikTok driving to the site |
You do not have to pick one. A common setup runs both: the marketplace for order volume, the website for customer data and higher-margin lines. For a comparison of the two biggest platforms, see TikTok Shop vs Shopee 2026.
Example: what is left from one marketplace order (hypothetical)
An order is VND 300,000. Assume total platform fees of 20% (VND 60,000), cost of goods of VND 150,000 and in-platform ads of VND 45,000. That leaves VND 45,000, or 15% of the price, before packaging and returns. This is an illustration, not any platform’s real fee schedule. The total value of orders on a marketplace is called GMV, and high GMV does not mean profit. Break-even ROAS after platform fees is covered in our guide to retail media in Vietnam.
Frequently asked questions
Is a social network with shops a marketplace?
Under Law No. 122/2025/QH15, it is a “social network conducting e-commerce”, a separate type, not an intermediary platform. Operator duties are in Article 18.
Do marketplace sellers need to register anything extra?
Sellers must provide identity information for verification and, if they sell goods in a conditional business line, submit proof of eligibility to the platform before selling.
Adtek runs ads on Shopee, TikTok Shop and Lazada and does not operate marketplace stores for clients. If you need a marketplace ad plan, see our Brand Commerce page.
