Former Chairman of Tri Viet Securities Company scheduled to appear in court

On March 22, the People's Court of Hanoi decided to bring Pham Thanh Tung, former Chairman of Tri Viet Securities Company (TVB), and seven other defendants to a first-instance trial for charges of manipulating the stock market.
Pham Thanh Tung, former Chairman of Tri Viet Securities Company. (Photo: SGGP)

Pham Thanh Tung, former Chairman of Tri Viet Securities Company. (Photo: SGGP)

The trial is scheduled to take place from April 10 to April 11 and will be presided over by Judge Luu Ngoc Canh, the Deputy Chief of the Criminal Court at the Hanoi People's Court. Four prosecutors from the Hanoi People's Procuracy, including senior prosecutor Mr. Le Huu Ngoc and supervisor Mr. Nguyen Thanh Lam, will be exercising the right to prosecute and supervise the trial.

The Supreme People's Procuracy previously indicted and prosecuted defendants Do Thanh Nhan (Chairman of Louis Holdings), Do Duc Nam (CEO of TVB), and Pham Thanh Tung (Chairman of TVB) for the crime of manipulating the stock market, in accordance with Clause 1, Article 211 of the Penal Code. The Procuracy also charged Le Thi Thu Huong (Deputy CEO of TVB) and senior leaders of Louis Holdings, including Vu Ngoc Long, Ngo Thuc Vu, and Trinh Thi Thuy Linh, as well as Le Thi Thuy Lien, who resides in Phong Phu Commune, Binh Chanh District, Ho Chi Minh City, with the same offense.

The indictment and case file reveal that Do Thanh Nhan and Do Duc Nam colluded to manipulate the stock prices of BII and TGG, motivated by the desire to gain illegal profits. They used securities accounts registered under the names of relatives, leaders, and trusted employees in Nhan's companies and instructed their subordinates to engage in buying and selling activities to manipulate the stock prices.

The prosecution agency determined that Nam engaged in securities manipulation and reported it to Pham Thanh Tung, who approved it and directed the use of Tri Viet Asset Management Company's funds to lend over VND748 billion to Do Thanh Nhan's group for stock trading purposes.

Nam and Nhan then instructed defendants Le Thi Thu Huong and Le Thi Thuy Lien to use 17 securities accounts of Do Thanh Nhan’s group to engage in methods, such as continuously placing buy and sell orders for BII and TGG stocks to create artificial supply and demand. They also continuously placed buy orders for these stocks with dominant volume at market close to create new closing prices for them.

According to the prosecutor's office, Pham Thanh Tung directed the Marketing Department to handle press inquiries and directed Do Duc Nam to split loans to avoid being detected when unusual signs were reported in the trading of BII and TGG stocks. In addition, when State management agencies were scheduled to check and inspect their companies, Tung directed the replacement of all the computer hard drives and the deletion of relevant messages to avoid detection.

The Procuracy alleges that defendants Do Thanh Nhan, Do Duc Nam, and Pham Thanh Tung manipulated the stock market for stocks with BII and TGG shares by creating virtual supply and demand, as well as new closing prices for BII and TGG stocks. This attracted many investors to participate in stock trading transactions, resulting in many consecutive sessions with ceiling increases and high liquidity for BII and TGG stocks.

On September 18, 2021, the price of BII shares reached a peak of VND33,800 per share, while that of TGG shares topped at VND74,800 per share on September 22, 2021. The defendants allegedly ended all acts of market manipulation for BII and TGG stocks on October 6, 2021, selling them for illicit profits totaling more than VND154 billion.

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