Truong My Lan, the chairwoman of Van Thinh Phat, a disgraced property developer, has been accused of manipulating SCB, a lender, to misappropriate VND304 trillion ($12.53 billion) from its customers. The Ministry of Public Security has recommended charging Lan with various crimes, including bribery, violation of banking regulations, and embezzlement. Additionally, 85 other individuals have been implicated in similar alleged crimes, involving the abuse of trust and appropriation of property.
Although Lan held no official title at the bank, investigators have revealed that her family members occupied senior positions, essentially serving her interests. Over the years, Lan, as the majority shareholder since 2012, consistently controlled between 85% and 91.5% of the bank’s shares, with the remaining shares owned by over 4,000 shareholders. Utilizing the bank as a means to raise funds, Lan obtained loans totaling VND304 trillion, which amounts to over VND415 trillion when factoring in interest rates.
The Ministry of Public Security has also suggested charging Lan with fraudulent appropriation of assets through bond issuance and money laundering. However, the police have treated this aspect as a separate case. Investigators have identified 25 bond batches, valued at over VND30 trillion, issued between 2018 and 2020, which exhibited signs of malicious intent and illegal activities in their formation and distribution.
Lan was arrested in October of last year, along with three alleged accomplices. Since then, several others have been apprehended in connection with the case. In March, five officials from the State Bank of Vietnam were arrested for their involvement. Currently, authorities are searching for two former SCB chairmen and five of their subordinates, including a Chinese national and a Canadian citizen.
The estimated value of Lan’s asset appropriation, standing at $12.53 billion, accounts for approximately 6% of Vietnam’s current GDP and 11% of the country’s total outstanding property loans. This figure surpasses the market capitalization of most Vietnamese banks, except Vietcombank. Moreover, it exceeds the combined net worth of Vietnam’s five billionaires, which currently amounts to $11.8 billion. Lan’s misappropriation is three times the net worth of Vietnam’s wealthiest individual, Pham Nhat Vuong.