The Unexpected Exit: A Female Powerhouse Steps Down as Chairwoman, CEO Resigns After 4 Months

31 Years as Chairwoman: A Legacy of Leadership at REE

A significant change in leadership took place at REE, a prominent company in the field of refrigeration and electromechanics. On November 22nd, the company announced that Mrs. Nguyen Thi Mai Thanh would be stepping down from her role as Chairwoman of the Board of Management after an impressive 31-year tenure. Mr. Alain Xavier Cany has been appointed as the new Chairman, bringing a wealth of experience to the role.

Mr. Cany is no stranger to the company, having previously served as REE’s non-executive Vice Chairman. His extensive background includes positions at Credit Commercial de France, HSBC Vietnam, and HSBC Hong Kong-China. Additionally, he has been an active participant in organizations such as Eurocham Vietnam and the Vietnam Business Forum (VBF). Mr. Cany’s election to the Board of Management in 2021 was facilitated by the nomination of Platinum Victory Pte. Ltd., a foreign fund.

Platinum Victory Pte. Ltd., an entity associated with the new Chairman, has registered to purchase 30 million REE shares from November 22nd to December 20th. If successful, their ownership in REE will increase to over 198 million shares, representing 42.07% of the company’s charter capital.

In addition to the change in chairmanship, REE also announced the departure of Mr. Le Nguyen Minh Quang from his position as General Director, effective November 22nd, 2024, as per the agreement to terminate the labor contract. Notably, Mr. Quang’s tenure as General Director lasted just over four months.

Prior to this, REE had relieved Mr. Huynh Thanh Hai from his duties as General Director and appointed Mr. Quang to the position for a term of three years, starting from July 1st, 2024.

Mr. Le Nguyen Minh Quang boasts an impressive academic background, including a degree in Construction from the University of Technology (VNU-HCM), a Master’s in Public Administration from the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy (Singapore) and the Harvard Kennedy School (USA), and a Ph.D. in Construction from Ecole Centrale Paris (France). His professional experience includes serving as General Director of Bachy Soletanche Vietnam and Head of the Ho Chi Minh City Urban Railway Management Board.

In a notable development, REE has appointed Mrs. Mai Thanh as the new General Director, replacing Mr. Quang. Mrs. Thanh, a graduate in refrigeration engineering from the Karl-Marx-Stadt University of Technology in Germany, has an extensive history with the company. She served as Chairwoman of the Board of Management from 1993 until 2024 and concurrently held the position of General Director from 1993 to July 2020.

Mrs. Thanh currently holds over 60.4 million REE shares, equivalent to 12.8% of the company’s charter capital. Her husband, Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Hai, owns 5.5% of the company’s charter capital, while their son, Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Thai Binh, a non-executive member of the Board of Management and Deputy General Director, holds 2%. Mrs. Thanh’s daughter also has a significant stake in the company, with a 1.3% ownership.

In other news, RTB, a rubber company, announced that they have received a resignation letter from their Chairwoman, Mrs. Le Thi Bich Loi, who is retiring at the age of 56. Mrs. Loi, with a background in agricultural engineering, dedicated over 34 years of her career to RTB, working her way up from an employee in the Agriculture Department to the position of Chairwoman in 2019.

This development comes ahead of RTB’s upcoming extraordinary general meeting of shareholders scheduled for December 20th, 2024. Prior to this, on November 5th, the company re-appointed Mr. Duong Tan Phong as Deputy General Director and a member of the Board of Management for a term of five years.

Turning to another company, C32, their Chief Accountant, Mr. Nguyen Xuan Hieu, has resigned from his position as of November 19th, citing personal reasons. Mr. Hieu, who joined C32 in 2004 and has served as Chief Accountant since May 2014, currently holds 3,372 C32 shares.

Leadership Changes Across Three FLC-Affiliated Companies in Just Over a Month

GAB, a mining and asset management company, has undergone a leadership change with the appointment of Mr. Trinh Quoc Thi as the new General Director, replacing Mr. Lam Duc Toan. Mr. Thi, only 34 years old, assumed this position on November 18th, 2024.

Interestingly, Mr. Thi was recently appointed as Deputy General Director of FLC Faros (ROS) on November 8th and FLC Stone (AMD) on October 7th. Within just over a month, he has taken on leadership roles in three FLC-affiliated companies.

GAB, ROS, and AMD are three of the five stocks involved in the case of former FLC Chairman Trinh Van Quyet, who was arrested for stock manipulation in 2022. Since then, these companies have experienced significant personnel changes.

On November 20th, Mr. Nghiem Xuan Truong, Deputy CFO of Cuu Long Pharmaceutical (DCL), submitted his resignation due to time constraints, preventing him from fully committing to the company’s activities. Mr. Truong, 48, holds a Bachelor’s degree in Corporate Finance and had served as DCL’s Deputy CFO since March 1, 2023. Prior to that, he was the CFO of the company.

According to DCL’s semi-annual management report, Mr. Truong also serves as the General Director of Benovas Medical Equipment Company and Deputy General Director of Benovas Pharmaceutical Company, both of which are subsidiaries of Cuu Long Pharmaceutical.