Regarding the Van Thinh Phat case phase 2, the investigation agency (IA) said that, regarding the act of fraud and appropriation of assets, from 2018 to 2020, Ms. Truong My Lan and her accomplices issued 25 packages of fake bonds, without collateral, and are currently insolvent.

The total value of these 25 bond packages is more than VND 30,869 billion, with an outstanding debt of more than VND 30,081 billion. The investigation agency identified the victims as 35,824 bondholders owning 25 bond codes of 4 companies An Dong, Quang Thuan, Sunny World and Setra at the time of the case's initiation (October 7, 2022).

According to the testimony of Van Thinh Phat Chairwoman Truong My Lan at the Investigation Police Agency, in 2018, Ms. Lan was reported by her subordinates that SCB Bank was under pressure to pay interest to people and repay many remaining financial debts from the VND 133,000 billion debt when merging 3 banks in 2012.

On the other hand, in 2017, the Banking Supervision and Inspection Agency of the State Bank inspected SCB Bank. The inspection results turned SCB from a bank that was supported for restructuring into a bank that operated normally, with restrictions on credit limits and many other activities, leading to a deadlock in SCB Bank's operations.

At this time, Ms. Nguyen Phuong Hong, Deputy General Director of SCB Bank, repeatedly proposed to Ms. Lan to use An Dong Company and other companies of Van Thinh Phat Group to issue bonds to have a source to handle debts, helping SCB overcome difficulties.

Ms. Lan stated that at that time she agreed to the policy of using An Dong Company to issue bonds.

Initially, Ms. Phuong Hong proposed to issue bonds for An Dong Company from 10,000 billion VND to 15,000 billion VND, but later, due to the actual situation, many financial pressures arose, so she issued bonds for An Dong Company up to 25,000 billion VND along with many other companies.

Ms. Lan took advantage of lunch at the headquarters of Van Thinh Phat Group in Ho Chi Minh City to invite some "trump cards" to discuss.

Specifically, Ms. Lan invited Mr. Dinh Van Thanh, Chairman of SCB; Mr. Vo Tan Hoang Van, General Director of SCB; Ms. Nguyen Phuong Hong, Deputy General Director of SCB; Mr. Nguyen Tien Thanh, General Director of SVSI Securities Company and Mr. Ho Buu Phuong, Deputy General Director in charge of finance of Van Thinh Phat Group to dinner.

During the meal, Ms. Lan proposed to lend money to An Dong Company to issue bonds, mobilize funds for SCB Bank's operations, and assigned the above individuals to proactively research and implement.

In particular, Mr. Vo Tan Hoang Van has the role of directing and operating SCB Bank to implement the introduction, consultation, and sale of bonds issued by companies under Van Thinh Phat Group to the people.

Ms. Nguyen Phuong Hong is in charge of coordinating with relevant parties to develop a plan for bond issuance, coordinate cash flow and use of proceeds from bond mobilization; manage and monitor the use of money. Other “trump cards” are also assigned specific tasks.

Commitment to overcome consequences of Chairman Van Thinh Phat

During the process of working with the Investigation Police, Ms. Truong My Lan admitted that the policy of issuing bonds of companies under Van Thinh Phat Group was against the law because the money from selling bonds was not used for investment, production, or to generate revenue to repay debt to bondholders, but was used to handle SCB's financial crisis, leading to the inability to pay.

Ms. Lan takes responsibility for her mistakes and repays the bonds to bondholders in the following forms:

Use all of Ms. Lan's money and assets that have been seized, blocked, and confiscated, and all of the money and assets that the Ho Chi Minh City People's Court has ordered individuals and organizations to return or compensate Ms. Lan to prioritize debt payment and bond interest for bondholders.

In addition, Ms. Lan hopes that individuals and organizations involved in the use of money raised from bonds of these companies must also be responsible for ensuring the full payment of debt and bond interest to the people.