Financial difficulties, unpaid wages of workers
Students have to take a break from school because most of the school staff are not returning to work, due to issues such as unpaid wages, violations of commitments, or unpaid social insurance… these are the situations that have been happening at the American International School Vietnam (AISVN) recently.
During a meeting between school representatives and a group of parents on March 19, Ms. Nguyen Thi Ut Em – Chairwoman of the Board of Directors of the School admitted the financial difficulties and had contacts with two investment funds, in which one fund intends to buy at least 70% of the school’s shares and hold the controlling power. Both funds want to be financial institutions that buy the majority of the school’s shares.
Email content that parents received from AISVN about students having to take a break from school
Source: Nguoi Lao Dong
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Ms. Nguyen Thi Ut Em
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According to research, the American International School Vietnam (AISVN) was founded by Ms. Nguyen Thi Ut Em (born in 1963) in August 2006, with the vision of an international K-12 school, from kindergarten to 12th grade, without limitation about the number of Vietnamese students.
The tuition fees at AISVN are among the most expensive in Ho Chi Minh City, ranging from 280 to 725 million VND per year from preschool to 12th grade. If parents choose to enroll their children at all levels at AISVN, they may have to spend more than 7.8 billion VND on tuition fees. This calculation does not include non-refundable fees such as registration fees of 1.5 – 2.5 million VND depending on the grade, enrollment fees of 20 – 40 million VND, English program development fees of 40 – 50 million VND, fees for experiential learning programs, textbook fees, transportation fees… In addition, parents may also have to pay an additional late payment fee of 0.05% per day on the total amount of fees that need to be paid if they pay after the announced deadline by the school.
Tuition fees for the 2023-2024 school year at AISVN. Source: AISVN
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AISVN introduces itself as the largest international school in Ho Chi Minh City, with a 6.5-hectare campus located in Nha Be district. The AISVN website states that they are an “IB Whole School” international school that operates on a non-profit basis, and all revenues will be reinvested in facilities development, improving the quality of teaching and learning activities at the school. Currently, at the Nha Be campus alone, the school has more than 1,200 students from preschool to 12th grade.
Facilities at the Nha Be campus. Photo: AISVN
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Hundreds of billions in bond debt
AISVN is managed by the American International Education Joint Stock Company (AIE). This company has attracted attention as it has repeatedly delayed the settlement period for bonds payment.
According to data from the Hanoi Stock Exchange (HNX), AIE has a single outstanding bond, with the code AIECH2224002, worth VND 317.8 billion. This is a non-convertible bond, without attached warrants, with collateral, an interest rate of 10.5% per year, and regular interest payments every 3 months at the end of each period. The principal is paid once upon maturity. The bond was issued on September 08, 2022, for a period of 24 months until September 08, 2024, and the depository institution is Petroleum Securities Joint Stock Company (HNX: PSI).
Prior to that, AIE had to extend the settlement period for another bond, AIECH2223001, by an additional 6 months until January 26, 2024, and adjusted the new interest rate to 12% per year. It is known that the VND 250 billion bond AIECH2223001 was issued on January 26, 2022, initially with a maturity of 18 months until July 26, 2023, a fixed interest rate of 11.5% per year, and the depository institution was Bao Viet Securities Joint Stock Company (HNX: BVS).
In mid-2023, AISVN caused a stir as many parents demanded repayment of the school’s debt under the contract, which was made through the form of paying tuition fees for their children.
According to this contract, parents will pay a large amount of money called an investment or loan with billions of VND, and in return, parents do not have to pay tuition fees while their children are studying at the school. The school will return the borrowed amount to parents when the child completes the program at the school or completes the transfer procedures to another school. Many parents have lent the school 2 – 3 billion VND, some even up to tens of billion VND. The school has promised to make payments multiple times, but parents have not received the money. At its peak in September 2023, many parents came to the school and put up banners to demand payment.
Education ecosystem
Ms. Ut Em is currently the Chairwoman of the Board of Directors and legal representative for multiple legal entities in the AISVN system.
In primary education, Ms. Ut Em owns AIE as mentioned above. According to research, AIE was established on October 15, 2018, with its headquarters at 220 Nguyen Van Tao, Long Thoi commune, Nha Be district, Ho Chi Minh City. The initial charter capital was VND 50 billion, of which Ms. Ut Em held 90%, Mr. Ho Quang Trung held 9.9%, and Mr. Ho Quang Tri held 0.1%. Only 10 days later, the company increased its capital to VND 1,000 billion, and the shareholder structure was not disclosed.
In lower secondary and upper secondary education, Ms. Ut Em owns AIC Education. The company was originally the International Education Joint Stock Company founded on January 11, 2018. The initial charter capital was VND 90 billion, of which Ms. Ut Em held 70%, Mr. Ho Quang Trung held 20%, and Ms. Nguyen Thi Anh Thu held 10%.
At the time of establishment, the company had its headquarters at 220 Nguyen Van Tao, but in October 2018, it moved to 209/1B Ton That Thuyet. In July 2019, the company changed its name to AIC Education as it is known today.
In high school education, Ms. Ut Em owns AIC Education Investment Joint Stock Company (AIC Education) founded on December 03, 2013.
According to the update on June 08, 2017, AIC Education had a charter capital of VND 745.3 billion, with its headquarters at 102C Nguyen Van Cu, Nguyen Cu Trinh ward, District 1, Ho Chi Minh City, and later moved to 220 Nguyen Van Tao. In October 2018, the company changed its main business line to upper secondary and high school education and moved its headquarters to 209/21B Ton That Thuyet.
In primary education, the ecosystem has International Education Group Joint Stock Company. However, initially, this company was founded on December 11, 2017, with its main business line being lower secondary and upper secondary education.
The initial charter capital of the International Education Group was VND 300 billion, in which Ms. Ut Em (Chairwoman of the Board of Directors and legal representative) held 80%, Mr. Ho Quang Trung held 15%, and Ms. Tran Thi Tuong Van held 5%. The company also had its headquarters at 220 Nguyen Van Tao initially, but later moved to 209/21B Ton That Thuyet in October 2018. The International Education Group changed its main business line to primary education in August 2019.
In addition, there is another company in the ecosystem that is currently not active in the education sector but has a “very educational” name, which is AIU International University Investment Joint Stock Company, founded on March 07, 2017, with its headquarters at 220 Nguyen Van Tao. The initial charter capital was VND 50 billion, in which Ms. Ut Em (Chairwoman of the Board of Directors and legal representative) held 96%, Ms. Tran Thi Tuong Van, and Mr. Ho Quang Trung held 2%. The main business line at that time was university and postgraduate education.
During its operation, AIU increased its capital to VND 200 billion in June 2017, moved its headquarters to 209/21B Ton That Thuyet in October 2018, changed its main business line to master’s degree training in October 2019, and then suddenly switched to the field of leasing machinery, equipment, and other tangible goods without operators. At that time, the position of Chairwoman of the Board of Directors and legal representative was transferred from Ms. Ut Em to Ms. Le Thi Thu Hien. In March 2021, Ms. Ut Em resumed this position.
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Ownership structure of Ms. Ut Em at companies in the AISVN system at the time of establishment
Source: VietstockFinance
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