VietNamNet Bridge - 2015 was a climactic year for a lot of bankers. A number of them were arrested and prosecuted in criminal cases. 

 

Mr Tram Be (left)

1.On July 21, the investigation agency under the Ministry of Public Security arrested Nguyen Xuan Son, ex-chairman of state-owned Vietnam National Oil and Gas Group (PetroVietnam), for his wrongdoings when he was a manager of Ocean Bank in 2008-2010.

Son has been charged of “negligence of responsibility, causing serious consequences,” and “abusing positions and powers to appropriate property”.

Son was once deputy CEO of Ocean Bank, deputy CEO of PetroVietnam before he was chair of PetroVietnam.

2015 was a climactic year for a lot of bankers. A number of them were arrested and prosecuted in criminal cases.

Son was believed to be responsible in the case of PetroVietnam losing VND800 billion in the investment deal in Ocean Bank.

2. Agribank, one of the largest commercial banks, got involved in some big cases in 2015 which caused losses of trillions of dong.

On December 21, the Hanoi People’s Court opened the first trial in a corruption case, in which the officers of an Agribank’s branch colluded with an enterprise to cause a loss of VND2.435 trillion.

Eighteen defendants, including former Agribank officials, were prosecuted for violating credit institutions’ lending regulations, abusing power while performing duties, and being irresponsible, causing serious consequences.

Pham Thi Bich Luong, former director of Agribank’s Nam Ha Noi Branch, was found as the person who was directly involved in the disbursement for Lifepro, causing a big loss to the bank.

In another case, Duong Thanh Cuong, exploited relations with Le Van Chuc, former director of Agribank’s Binh Chanh Branch, got big loans from the bank, causing a big loss of VND966 billion to the bank.

3. The public was stirred up by the State Bank of Vietnam’s statement released in late October that then Sacombank’s permanent vice chairman Tram Be was required to leave the bank by October 30 and deal with debts he was responsible for.

The central bank also reported the merger of Southern Bank with Sacombank at the same time.

By the time the statement was announced, Tram Be was known as the ‘mysterious tycoon’, believed to be one of the most influential hidden faces.

4.Twenty five bank managers were involved in the Phuong Nam Seafood case. 

The court handed out a total of hundreds of years of jail sentences to 27 defendants in a case in which they appropriated assets and violated lending regulations. Twenty-five of them were the managers and officers of five banks.

In 2008-2012, Phuong Nam Company in Soc Trang province borrowed VND1.7 trillion from eight banks.

5. OceanBank, GP Bank and Construction Bank, one after another, have been taken over by the State Bank at zero dong. The takeover was an action aiming to save the banks which were on the verge of bankruptcy.

Infonet