Vietnam's central bank places lender under 'special scrutiny'
Sunday, October 16, 2022, 10:30 GMT+7
The State Bank of Vietnam, the country’s central bank, said it has placed Saigon Joint Stock Commercial Bank (SCB) under “special scrutiny” to stabilise its operations after depositors thronged the bank’s branches to withdraw money this week.
The run on SCB by depositors followed the arrest on Oct. 8 of Vietnamese real estate tycoon Truong My Lan, chairwoman of Ho Chi Minh City-based Van Thinh Phat Holdings Group, over suspicions of ties between Lan and the bank.
SCB will operate under the supervision of the State Bank, the regulator said in a statement on Friday, with personnel from four lenders - Vietcombank, VietinBank, BIDV and Agribank - mobilised to help with the management.
The State Bank said it would coordinate with other relevant ministries to take necessary and comprehensive measures so that SCB, the country’s fifth-largest commercial lender by deposits and assets, would operate safely.
The statement did not say how long the special scrutiny would be in place.
