Four Vietnamese companies are facing a risk of losing five shipments worth over US$500,000 exported to the UAE as the goods in four of the shipments have been taken out of the port of destination but no payment was made to the sellers, a Vietnamese trade association has warned, calling it a suspected fraud.

These companies, all members  of the Vietnam Pepper and Spices Association (VPA), shipped a total of five containers, including two containers of pepper, one of cinnamon, one of star anise, and one of cashew, with a total value of $516,700, to the Jebel Ali port in the UAE, the VPA reported on Monday.

The buyer of all these shipments is Bab Al Rehab Foodstuff Trading LLC (BARFT) based in Dubai, and the importer’s bank is Ajman Bank PJSC. 

The payment method for the goods is documents against payment, according to the VPA.

During the time the consignments were transported to the port, the exporters' Vietnamese banks delivered five sets of original documents for the shipments via DHL courier service to Ajman Bank PJSC and the bank's staff signed to acknowledge receipt of them. 

After four out of the five containers arrived at the said port, the exporters’ banks asked Ajman Bank PJSC to pay for the exporters but no payment was made because all the five sets of documents were no longer at the bank for unknown reasons, the VPA said.     

That means a total amount of nearly $400,000 worth of the four containers has not yet been paid to the Vietnamese exporters, whose names have yet to be announced. 

By accessing the information system of the shipping line that transported the goods to the UAE, the exporters found that their shipments had been delivered to someone who possessed the original set of documents, according to the VPA.

When the incident occurred, the Vietnamese exporters could not get in contact with the buyer, BARFT, and this company later closed its registered office.

Meanwhile, Ajman Bank PJSC has failed to give a clear response to the exporters and their banks, saying it has transferred the issue to its head office for settlement.  

Such a situation means the remaining container, for anise, worth $126,300, expected to arrive at the same port on Wednesday, may suffer the same fate due to the loss of documents. 

The VPA has therefore requested the Jebel Ali port authority to keep that container when it comes, not allowing anyone to take it out of the port, pending a resolution from competent agencies, the Vietnam Government Portal (VGP) reported.

The VPA and the Vietnam Cashew Association (Vinacas) have reported the incident to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, and the Vietnam Trade Office (VTO) and the Vietnamese Embassy in the UAE for help.

The embassy later sent a note to Ajman Bank PJSC and relevant UAE agencies including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Central Bank and Dubai police, asking for their assistance in dealing with the case.

On July 18, the VTO handed a note to Ajman Bank PJSC requesting an explanation but the bank said all related matters would be handled by its head office.

Two days later, the VTO worked with the Dubai police to request them to launch an investigation into the suspected fraud, according to VGP.

"This incident must be resolved soon to help recover money for the four businesses, and also to prevent similar cases, given that the remaining container is going to reach the port,” the VPA said.

The association emphasized that the case is “an organized fraud in which there might be collusion between the scammers and the UAE bank or its employees.”  

To avoid possible unfortunate damages, Vietnamese exporters must be cautious in dealing with foreign enterprises and carefully negotiate payment terms with them in every deal, the trade ministry advised.

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