Property developer FLC chairman arrested for bourse manipulation

Trinh Van Quyet, Chairman of FLC Group, one of Vietnam's leading real estate developers, was arrested on Tuesday on charges of “manipulating” and “concealing information in securities activities”.

Quyet was investigated by the Ministry of Public Security’s investigative agency (C01) for “manipulating the stock market” under Article 211 of the Criminal Code.

Along with Quyet, many individuals from FLC Group JSC, its member unit BOS Securities JSC and some other companies are being investigated for acts of “manipulating the stock market” and “concealing information in securities activities” related to a scandal that occurred on January 10.

C01 found that the acts of these people caused serious damages to investors, affecting the operation of Vietnam’s stock market. Authorities on Tuesday searched 21 places of residence and working of many concerned people

On January 10, Quyet was discovered to have sold 74.8 million FLC shares without informing the market in advance as required by the law, given his position as the company’s chairman.

The Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange (HoSE) on January 11 issued a notice to cancel this transaction, and on January 12 many investors were refunded the money they spent to buy the shares.

The stock market regulator State Securities Commission (SSC) on January 17 fined Quyet VND1.5 billion (nearly $66,000) for his act and froze his securities trading account for five months.

Previously, in November 2017, Quyet was fined VND65 million ($2,840) for selling 57 million shares without notifying the market regulator.

Quyet was born in 1975 in Vinh Phuc province, northern Vietnam. In addition to being FLC Group chairman, Quyet and FLC are the owners of Bamboo Airways, with an over 80% stake.