Vietnam’s Eximbank replaces Ho Chi Minh City branch chief in wake of savings theft scandal
Vietnam’s Eximbank replaces Ho Chi Minh City branch chief in wake of savings theft scandal
The director of the Ho Chi Minh City branch of Eximbank has been replaced in light of a headline-grabbing scandal where a depositor had more than US$10 million in her savings accounts stolen by the lender’s ex-leader.
Eximbank deputy CEO Van Thai Bao Nhi will take her second role as chief of the Ho Chi Minh City branch, while its ex-director, Bui Thi Thien Tam, was transferred to the credit institution’s headquarters for “another position,” the bank said Friday.
The personnel reshuffle was announced five days after police launched legal proceedings against five Eximbank employees for their role in helping a wanted former executive steal VND245 billion ($10.8 million) from different savings books of a customer named Chu Thi Binh.
Two of the bankers have been taken into custody, while the three others were banned from leaving their residence to serve the investigation.
Le Nguyen Hung, a former deputy director of Eximbank Ho Chi Minh City, used fake papers and forged authorization letters, with the authentic signature of Binh, for his whopping savings theft. Eximbank admitted in February that Hung is on the run overseas after a wanted notice was issued for him in December 2017.
Nhi has been overseeing the operations of the Ho Chi Minh City branch since the scandal broke out.
On top of the removal of the branch chief, Eximbank also reported to the State Bank of Vietnam on Friday that it has fortified regulations on cash withdrawal of savings worth more than VND2 billion ($88,106) to alleviate risks.
Under the new rules, fingerprint authentication is made mandatory if a depositor wants to authorize anyone to use his or her account. Eximbank clerks in charge of customer profiles and supervisors will also be transferred across branches and transaction offices to prevent corruption.
In the case of Binh, investigators confirmed that the authorization letter, with the real signature signed in advance by the victim and one forged by Hung, was verified without the presence of both the two relevant individuals.
