Sacombank has planned to foreclose some 80 million STB shares worth some VND1.7 trillion (US$81.2 million) owned by Dang Van Thanh, the bank’s founder, and his son Dang Hong Anh by the end of May this year.

The move followed a deal reached on December 5, 2012, between the bank and Thanh, former chairman of Sacombank, and Anh, former vice chairman of Sacombank, according to Phan Huy Khang, general director of Sacombank.

The deal resulted from a directive by the State Bank of Vietnam on debts worth some VND1.59 trillion that should have been recovered, Khang said.

Under the agreement, the bank, coded STB on Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE), agreed to use the stakes Thanh and Anh owns in Sacombank, equivalent to 7.435 percent or 79.84 million shares, to pay for all the unrecovered.

In the 2012 financial statements, the bank said that the aforementioned STB shares are foreclosed properties pending for recovery.

STB shares were traded at VND 21,200 per share on Wednesday, down VND500 per share day on day. It rebounded to VND21,300 per share on Thursday.

According to Sacombank’s 2013 financial statements audited by PricewaterhouseCoopers, the bank's total assets in 2012 increased by VND313.5 billion compared to the unaudited statement, reaching VND151.28 trillion.

New group distrusts him

Dang Van Thanh has told Tuoi Tre that the move of Sacombank cannot be called “foreclosure”, as this is an agreement between the bank and his family.

“All of the debts related to us are collateral loans, rated as A-grade debts, and have yet to be matured.”

Regarding why Sacombank is rushing to collect the unmatured debts, Thanh explained that the new group of shareholders at the bank holds a negative view towards some customers that have relationships with him.

“Those companies that are regarded as being related to my family are actually joint-stock companies whose shares are listed on the stock market, such as Bien Hoa, Bourbon Tay Ninh, Ninh Hoa”.

“We are just normal shareholders, not having a dominant role in those listed firms.”

All of them have safe and sound credit profiles, as they have paid their debts on time, he added.

The new board of directors, including some from the group of those new shareholders, claimed the debts are unsound and asked the bank to set aside a huge sum as loan-loss provisioning, according to Thanh.

I have decided to take the initiative and reached a deal with the bank, Thanh added.

Thanh also rejected rumors that companies related to him have borrowed up to VND4-5 trillion.

In fact, the number is smaller than that, as many of them have already repaid the debts after knowing they were blacklisted as “relating to Dang Van Thanh’s family”.