'Diamond tycoon' arrested, wealthy Nghe An family in turmoil

South African authorities have arrested two Vietnamese individuals, Huy Bao Tran and Chu Dang Khoa, for their alleged involvement in a large-scale rhino horn smuggling ring in South Africa.

Khoa reportedly owns an elephant sanctuary in South Africa and is associated with expensive supercars and rare gemstone collections.

Chu Dang Khoa is closely linked with Thien Minh Duc Group (TMD Group). In his role as a major shareholder, at one point holding over 31 percent of the charter capital, Khoa and his mother, Chu Thi Thanh (Chairwoman), led the company. This is not merely a fuel trading company but also a diversified business “empire” in Vietnam’s central region.

On January 17, 2025, the Investigation Police Agency officially decided to initiate a criminal case related to violations at Thien Minh Duc Group.

Thanh, along with several accomplices, was prosecuted on two charges: “embezzlement of property” and “illegal printing, issuance and trading of invoices and documents.”

Vuong's assets soar, Vietnam has 3 more dollar billionaires

Forbes has just announced the list of the world's top 200 USD billionaires. Among them, Pham Nhat Vuong, Chairman of Vingroup, ranks 93rd with estimated assets of about $27.7 billion (as of March 1). Vuong's assets have surpassed those of the Samsung President.

In 2026, Vietnam gained 3 more USD billionaires, namely Vingroup Vice Chair Pham Thu Huong ($3 billion); Pham Thuy Hang, Vingroup Vice Chair ($2.1 billion); and VPBank Chair Ngo Chi Dung. Pham Thu Huong is the wife of Pham Nhat Vuong, and Pham Thuy Hang is Huong's sister.

Nghe An enterprise bought 30kg of gold for VND142 billion 

On March 12, the Ha Tinh Department of Finance stated that the agency had just organized a draw for the right to buy nearly 30kg of pure gold. This was smuggled gold and seized in Ha Tinh.

Six enterprises participated in the draw. However, no enterprise in Ha Tinh registered to draw for this gold. Among the six participating enterprises, one from Nghe An won the draw to buy these assets for VND142 billion.

Banks offer trillion-VND debts of petroleum tycoons for sale

After a long period of losses, Nam Song Hau Petro's loan of over VND1,300 billion at Agribank has been put up for auction to recover debt. Collateral includes a network of petrol stations and real estate.

Meanwhile, the trillion-dong debt of Orient Oil is being prepared for auction by BIDV. The starting price equals the entire outstanding principal, interest, and fees (if any) as of December 26, 2025, estimated at VND1.353 trillion, including VND783.676 billion in principal and VND569.695 billion in interest.

Bank stocks surge while oil & gas shares fall as crude prices cool

At the end of the trading session on March 10, the stock market rebounded after a sharp drop. However, the recovery was not as strong as typically seen after major declines. The VN-Index rose 23.94 points to 1,676 points, equivalent to 1.45 percent.

Bottom-fishing cash flows helped many blue-chip stocks rebound, while oil and gas shares came under pressure as global oil prices declined.

Prior to that, on March 9, the stock market witnessed an unprecedented sharp decline, losing more than 6.5 percent with almost all major stocks dropping significantly. The conflict in the Middle East and the surge in oil prices strongly impacted investor sentiment.

MOF proposes e-invoice exemption for online household sellers

The Ministry of Finance is seeking public feedback on a draft decree regulating electronic invoices and documents. Notably, the drafting agency proposes several cases where the use of electronic invoices would not be required.

The draft decree also proposes that electronic invoices generated from cash registers will not apply to the sale of goods or the provision of services conducted on e-commerce platforms or other digital platforms.

In addition, the Ministry suggests that in certain cases where goods or services are sold to individual buyers who do not request invoices, sellers may issue a consolidated invoice at the end of the day.

Rising fuel prices put pressure on exchange rate

The State Bank of Vietnam said tensions in the Middle East have put pressure on the exchange rate and the domestic monetary market.

Amid mounting pressure on the exchange rate, foreign currency supply and demand, and overall macroeconomic stability, the central bank has managed the central exchange rate flexibly in line with market developments, helping absorb external shocks.

Hanh Nguyen