Two companies fined billions of VND
On February 7th,
the State Securities Commission
(SSC) announced decisions to penalize 12 companies and 1 individual. The fined companies include: Nam Long Investment Corporation, ROX Living Corporation, Dak R’Tih Hydropower Joint Stock Company, Meey Land Group Corporation, Stanley Brothers Securities Joint Stock Company, Vietcap Securities Joint Stock Company, BOS Securities Joint Stock Company, VPBank Securities Joint Stock Company, SCG Construction Corporation, VNDirect Securities Joint Stock Company, Hestia Corporation, Trinh Gia Nguyen Telecommunications Co., Ltd., DIC Holdings Construction Joint Stock Company… The individual who received the penalty is Mr. Bui Van Tu – a member of the Board of Directors of SCG Construction Group.
Among the 12 fined companies, ROX Living Corporation received the heaviest penalty, nearly 3 billion VND for not reporting the expected transactions of MSB shares. ROX Living was formerly known as TNG Realty Corporation, an organization related to Mr. Tran Xuan Quang, an independent member of the Board of Directors of Vietnam Maritime Commercial Joint Stock Bank. In August 2022, this company sold over 9.7 million MSB shares without reporting the expected transactions. SSC applied additional disciplinary measures to ROX Living by suspending its securities trading activities for 3 months.
BOS Securities, with 8 violations, was fined over 1 billion VND.
Another billion-VND fined company is BOS Securities, with an amount of 1.08 billion VND. The company committed 8 violations. The most serious violation was fined 275 million VND, for providing pre-sale securities financing services without the written approval of SSC. The company was fined 187.5 million VND for lending money to some customers to execute buy orders on the settlement date.
BOS Securities was also fined 137.5 million VND for violating regulations on margin trading restrictions. Specifically, the company opened margin trading accounts and disbursed margin trading loans to related parties, including Ms. Huong Tran Kieu Dung, Ms. Trinh Thi Thuy Nga, and Ms. Nga’s father-in-law and mother-in-law. FLC Securities also allowed some customers to place buy orders for securities without enough money in their securities trading accounts at the time the orders were placed; it did not retain evidence of buy orders placed by some customers; it did not publish many reports or publish them incompletely, it did not have internal audit reports on anti-money laundering in 2019 and 2020 sent to the State Bank’s Anti-Money Laundering Bureau.
Series of securities companies fined heavily
A series of securities companies were also
fined
during this period. VNDirect Securities Joint Stock Company was fined 642.5 million VND for multiple violations: coordinating with third parties to provide loan services for customers to trade securities/ withdraw money without reporting to SSC, without written opinions of SSC; allowing customers to place buy
orders for
securities when their accounts do not have enough money at the time of placing the orders; authorizing customers to transfer domestic money between accounts; not publishing some resolutions of the Board of Directors, and reports related to bonds in 2020.
Stanley Brothers Securities Joint Stock Company was fined 450 million VND for 2 violations. Specifically, 275 million VND was imposed as a penalty for the violation of not ensuring accurate information in the records of private bond issuance/offering, which can be verified and have sufficient content as required in the records. The violation by Stanley Brothers Securities is related to the organization’s advisory role in the private bond offering records for Infrastructure Development Group Corporation.
The second violation by Stanley Brothers Securities is reporting incorrect information, for which it was fined 175 million VND. The company reported separate bond offerings by Infrastructure Development Group Corporation, Ozen Health and Beauty Joint Stock Company, and Igarten Education Development Joint Stock Company through dealer offerings. However, the company reported the organizations offering bonds as direct sellers and bond consultants to investors.
Securities companies with common bond-related violations (illustrative image).
VPBank Securities Joint Stock Company was fined 340 million VND for not submitting reports on bonds according to legal regulations within the prescribed time in 2021 and 2022; not ensuring accurate information in the records of private bond issuance/offering that can be verified and have sufficient content as required in the records. The violation is related to information about the private bond offering by My Phu Investment and Business Co., Ltd., Nui Phao Mineral Processing Exploitation Joint Stock Company, and Nova Hotels & Resorts Joint Stock Company.
Also, during the Lunar New Year period, several companies were fined hundreds of millions of VND. Hestia Joint Stock Company was fined 435 million VND for not publishing information, publishing inaccurate information, violating regulations on transactions with shareholders and company managers in a business cooperation contract with Mr. La Giang Trung – an internal person of the company. Hestia is associated with the name of Mr. La Giang Trung – a famous investor in the financial market.
