Appellate trial held for Van Thinh Phat case
The High People’s Court in Ho Chi Minh City on November 4 opened the appellate trial for the case involving property developer Van Thinh Phat Group and Saigon Commercial Joint Stock Bank (SCB).
The court is expected to consider the appeals lodged by Truong My Lan, former Chairwoman of Van Thinh Phat, and 47 other defendants on charges including “violating regulations on lending activities of credit institutions,” “embezzlement,” “giving bribes,” “receiving bribes,” “abuse of power while performing official duties,” and “violating regulations on banking operations and other activities related to banking operations.”
The trial, set to last until November 25, has been opened due to the 48 defendants appealing the previous first-instance verdict, with My Lan appealing the entire judgment. Additionally, the aggrieved party – the SCB – and other parties with related rights and obligations – including Quoc Cuong Gia Lai JSC, T&H Ha Long JSC, and Au Lac Quang Ninh company – also filed appeals.
According to the first-instance judgment of the People’s Court of HCM City, Lan oversaw various companies operating in a conglomerate model centred on Van Thinh Phat. After becoming aware that the SCB, Tin Nghia Bank, and De Nhat Bank (Ficombank) were facing liquidity issues that necessitated merger or acquisition, Lan enlisted trusted associates to purchase substantial shares. By October 2022, she had amassed and controlled approximately 91.5% of SCB’s shares.
The investigation determined that from January 1, 2012 to October 7, 2022, Lan directed the creation of 2,527 fraudulent loan documents to disburse a total of over VND1.06 quadrillion (US$44.17 billion) from SCB Bank. As of October 17, 2022, her associated group of defendants still had 1,284 outstanding loans with a debt balance of more than VND677.28 trillion, all classified as non-recoverable.
After deducting the value of collaterals, the indictment determined that Lan caused the SCB an estimated loss of approximately VND498 trillion. The criminal actions of the woman and her accomplices were deemed the fundamental reason for the bank's complete loss of liquidity, resulting in substantial non-recoverable credit debt and a negative equity capital of nearly VND443.77 trillion.
The first-instance verdict sentenced Lan to 20 years in prison for "violating regulations on lending activities of credit institutions," the death penalty for "embezzlement," and 20 years for "giving bribes." The combined sentence was the death penalty. Regarding civil liability, the judgment required the defendant to compensate the SCB for the outstanding debt of the 1,243 remaining loans as of October 17, 2022, which are worth VND673.8 trillion.
