Ex-Chairman of FLC Group prosecuted for stock market manipulation, fraud
The Supreme People's Procuracy has recently issued an indictment prosecuting 51 defendants in the case of stock market manipulation related to the FLC Group Joint Stock Company.
Specifically, the defendants were prosecuted for "Stock market manipulation", "Fraudulent appropriation of property", "Abuse of power or position while performing official duties", and "Intentional dissemination of false information or concealment of information in securities activities".
Notably, Trinh Van Quyet, Ex-Chairman of the Board of Directors of the FLC Group JSC, and his two younger sisters Trinh Thi Thuy Nga and Trinh Thi Minh Hue were accused of "Stock market manipulation" and "Fraudulent appropriation of property”.
According to the indictment, these offenses occurred at the FLC Group, BOS Securities Joint Stock Company, Faros Construction Joint Stock Company, related companies within the ecosystem of the FLC Group, the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange, the Supervision Department of Public Companies under the State Securities Commission, and the Vietnam Securities Depository.
Regarding the act of "Stock market manipulation", from May 26, 2017 to January 10, 2022, Quyet directed Hue and accomplices to use the identities of employees, relatives, and acquaintances to establish companies and open securities accounts and bank accounts.
Hue used these accounts to manage and conduct market manipulation activities involving five stocks, namely AMD, HAI, GAB, FLC, and ART. Following Quyet's instructions, Hue sold shares on the market for illicit gains totaling over VND723 billion (US$28.9 million) when the stock prices increased.
For the act of "Fraudulent appropriation of property," from 2014 to September 2016, Quyet directed individuals who were leaders or employees of the Faros company, as well as companies within the FLC Group, and relatives and acquaintances to act as shareholders to falsify capital contribution documents to raise Faros's chartered capital from VND1.5 billion to VND4.3 trillion.
They created documents and requested State management agencies in the securities sector to approve the registration of the company as a public company, the registration of securities depository, and the listing of 430 million shares formed from the falsified capital contribution of Faros on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange.
After Faros's shares were listed on the stock exchange, from September 2016 to March 2022 (the time of indictment and detention), Quyet and his accomplices sold over 391 million shares formed from the falsified capital contribution held in the Faros Company, resulting in proceeds of VND4.8 trillion, of which over VND3.6 trillion was misappropriated from investors in the stock market.
