Trương Mỹ Lan, 68, chairwoman of real estate developer Vạn Thịnh Phát, is facing death penalty for bribery, violating bank regulations and embezzlement. — VNA/VNS Photo

HCM CITY — Trương Mỹ Lan, chairwoman of real estate developer Vạn Thịnh Phát, is facing death penalty for bribery, violating bank regulations and embezzlement, which is considered the largest financial scandal in Southeast Asia.

At an ongoing trial on Tuesday in HCM City, the city People’s Procuracy proposed the “most severe penalty” for the chairwoman for accusation of misappropriating VNĐ304 trillion from Saigon Commercial Joint Stock Bank (SCB), the largest private lender by assets in Việt Nam.

The People’s Procuracy has cited the serious nature of her crimes, which have had serious consequences and have little possibility of recovery.

While all other defendants in the case have admitted to the charges brought against them, the 68-year-old real estate tycoon is the only one who maintains her innocence.

She had also rejected the prosecution’s accusation that she manipulated the lender’s operations, saying that she only owned a 5 per cent stake in the bank.

She explained that remaining stakes were held by her two daughters (5 per cent each) and friends in Việt Nam (30 per cent) and overseas (30 per cent).

The police have seized millions of US dollars in cash and frozen assets linked to Lan, with the funds intended to be used to compensate for damages at SCB and repay bond victims.

The chairwoman is currently being tried for bribery, violating bank regulations and embezzlement, and could face the death penalty if found guilty.

Lan’s husband and niece are also among the accused, as well as numerous SCB executives and government officials.

They all face charges of embezzlement, bribery, abuse of power while performing official duties, lack of responsibility causing serious consequences, and violating bank regulations.

Earlier, the real estate tycoon had offered to sell off her personal assets to compensate for all the damages without providing specific information about the assets when asked by the judge.

Vạn Thịnh Phát had a network of 1,000 fake companies set up by the chairwoman in order to “borrow” money from the bank and to acquire shares in it.

In 2011, Lan was proposed by the central bank to merge two other private banks with SCB, the largest private bank by assets in Việt Nam.

Between 2012 and 2022, SCB gave Lan over 2,500 loans worth over VNĐ1 quadrillion, or 93 per cent of its loans. In all, she is accused of causing losses of VNĐ498 trillion to the bank.

To hide the lender’s poor financial problems, Lan bribed various government auditors and inspectors.

The value of Lan’s alleged asset appropriation, which occurred between 2012 and 2022, was equivalent to over 10 per cent of Việt Nam’s GDP in 2022.

Due to the complexity of the case and the large number of defendants involved, the trial is expected to take a huge amount of time before a final decision is reached.

The trial is expected to last until the end of next month.

The trial will be conducted in “a fair and transparent manner, without any restrictions or privileges,” so as to uphold the public’s trust in the Party and the State, according to the People’s Procuracy.

The chairwoman’s arrest at the end of 2022 came as part of a national corruption crackdown that has swept up many officials and members of the country’s business elite in recent years. — VNS