Operation of Vietnam's retail giant Petrolimex 'still normal' despite CEO suspension

Petrolimex is operating normally despite the Ministry of Finance's (MoF) recent "temporary suspension" of its CEO Dao Nam Hai, says a corporate representative.

The MoF temporarily assigned chairman Pham Van Thanh to manage the state capital, replacing Hai from Tuesday.

Information about why Hai has been suspended from the position was not disclosed.

Born in 1974, Hai holds a master’s degree in economic law, a bachelor’s degree in business administration from National Economics University, and an MBA from Vietnam National University, both in Hanoi.

Before joining Petrolimex, he spent 24 years at Pjico (Petrolimex Insurance Corporation) in various positions. In March 2013, he was appointed Pjico's Party chief, member of the board of directors, and CEO.

From October 2017 to August 2020, Hai concurrently held positions at Petrolimex, including deputy CEO (October 2017) and standing member of the company's Party committee (August 2020).

In March 2022, he officially stepped down from all roles at Pjico and assumed the position of CEO of Petrolimex. Shortly thereafter, he was also appointed a board member of the corporation.

Petrolimex, listed on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange as PLX, reported an 81% plunge year-on-year in Q1 after-tax profit to nearly VND211 billion ($8.1 million), marking its second-lowest quarterly result in the past 10 quarters.

Net revenue in the quarter reached VND67.86 trillion ($2.6 billion), down nearly 10%, according to the corporation’s Q1 consolidated financial report.

In the stock market, PLX closed Thursday at VND35,700 ($1.37) per share, up 6.57% from the previous session.