Property developers Tuan Chau, Van Thinh Phat spin complicated web

Tuan Chau Group and Van Thinh Phat Group both contributed capital to and opened companies in Quang Ninh and Ho Chi Minh City where they are respectively headquartered, but these moves have proven unsuccessful with many joint ventures dissolving.

In mid-December 2023, the Supreme People's Procuracy issued an indictment prosecuting Truong My Lan, chairwoman of Van Thinh Phat Group and 85 other defendants in the case at Van Thinh Phat Group and Saigon Commercial Bank (SCB), along with related units and organizations.

The authorities confiscated more than VND590 billion ($24.2 million) and nearly $15 million in the investigation phase, and over VND55 billion ($2.26 million) billion in the prosecution phase. In addition, they also frozen real estate directly related to Lan and held by individuals in her name.

Notably, the list of frozen assets includes eight properties of Au Lac Co., Ltd. in Quang Ninh province related to Lan's cooperation agreement with Tuan Chau Group – a firm associated with the name of the "Island Lord" Dao Hong Tuyen.

In mid-2022, Van Thinh Phat Group was present on Tuan Chau Island through a legal entity named Viva Land. At that time, Viva Land said it was developing villas, resort villas, shophouses, apartments and condotels.

Although Viva Land did not release specific information about its projects, in 2022, Au Lac - the core legal entity in the Tuan Chau Group team and Hung Phuc Real Estate Co., Ltd. reached a cooperation agreement and made a deposit to transfer part of the Morning Star and Hoang Long villa projects.

Hung Phuc Real Estate was established in June 2020, with founding shareholders being Pham Nguyen Bao Trung (65%) and Ho My Phuong (35%). Trung, born 1989, was also the legal representative and CEO of the company (2020-2022).

In May 2022, Hung Phuc Real Estate's shareholder structure changed with Nguyen Thi Hue holding 35% of the charter capital and Do Thi Ut Hong 65%. Both of them were related to the Van Thinh Phat team.

These two major real estate groups also worked side by side at T&H Ha Long JSC - owner of a 75.3-hectare golf course project in Tuan Chau ward, Ha Long town, with a total investment capital of about VND1 trillion ($41 million).

In early 2020, Lam Khac Vinh (Truong Vincent Kinh) replaced Dao Hong Tuyen as chairman of T&H Ha Long JSC, while Tuyen's son, Dao Anh Tuan, continued as CEO. In late 2020, the position of chairman was transferred to Nguyen Vu Anh Thi (born in 1982). Truong Vincent Kinh and Nguyen Vu Anh Thi were both "links" with the Van Thinh Phat team.

The Van Thinh Phat team had controlling power at T&H Ha Long, holding up to 18 million shares or 70.59% of the company's capital. Truong My Lan placed the above shares under the names of Vu Thi Hong Hanh, Nguyen Vu Anh Thi, Nguyen Thanh Tung, Pham Thi Lan Phuong and Mai Thi Cam Thuy. Currently, all the shares have been frozen by the authorities.

The close relationship between Tuan Chau and Van Thinh Phat did not stop in Quang Ninh as businessman Dao Hong Tuyen implemented the strategy of moving southwards to Ho Chi Minh City in the bold footsteps of his partner Truong My Lan.

Ambitious “southwards” plan

In early 2017, Tuan Chau Group drew great public attention when it proposed a build-transfer (BT) super project to build a boulevard along the Saigon River with a total investment of about VND63.5 trillion ($2.6 billion). In return, Tuan Chau wanted a land fund of about 12,400 hectares, equivalent to 5% of the total land area of Ho Chi Minh City.

Six months later, Tuan Chau Group, with the ambition to eliminate the Kim Bien "grim reaper" market, sent a document to the HCMC People's Committee proposing to invest in a chemical flavoring center on an area of 11.2 hectares in Ward 4, District 8.

At the same time, Kim Bien Market Business and Management Company Limited was set up with a charter capital of VND1.2 trillion, with Tuan Chau Group contributing 41% through Au Lac. Meanwhile, Tan Hung Investment JSC, a legal entity holding 49%, had many links with Le Thi Giau - former chairwoman of the company. Giau stepped down in April 2021.

In addition, Tuan Chau Group established a series of companies with the same headquarters at 34 Dong Du, Ben Nghe ward, District 1, HCMC, such as Saigon Marina City Co., Ltd. (with charter capital of VND900 billion), Saigon New City Co., Ltd. (VND3 trillion); Tuan Chau Development and Investment JSC (VND5.5 trillion); Tuan Chau Holdings Group Corporation (VND23.8 billion); and Tuan Chau Global Capital Investment Corporation (VND5.45 trillion).

Some of the above legal entities saw the presence of the Van Thinh Phat team. For example, at Tuan Chau Global Capital Investment Corporation, Dao Hong Tuyen held 49%, while other shareholders included Dang Trinh Thanh Phuong and Chau San Pham - important links in the Viva Land ecosystem. Pham was also the general director and legal representative of the Tuan Chau Development and Investment JSC.

However, the two super projects of Tuan Chau Group could not take shape afterward. On the other hand, all the legal entities established by the firm ceased operations.

Tuan Chau Group then turned its direction to Ba Ria-Vung Tau and Ca Mau provinces.

In Ba Ria-Vung Tau, Tuan Chau Group in March 2018 proposed an investment plan for the Marina City townhouse project at a coastal area in Vung Tau town. According to Tuan Chau Group, the 345-hectare project is expected to accommodate about 7,500 dwellers and about 12,000 visitors per day.

However, in 2019, the People's Committee of Ba Ria Vung Tau province agreed to select developers for five large-scale projects in the list of its key projects, including the Marina City project.

As for Ca Mau, during a working session with the provincial People's Committee in April 2021, Dao Hong Tuyen expressed his desire to invest in building a 500-hectare seafood city in Ca Mau by sea reclamation.

Not only cooperating with Tuan Chau Group, Van Thinh Phat Group also expanded cooperation with other partners to develop super projects in Quang Ninh province.

Among those was Ben Thanh Holdings Group JSC. In mid-2020, Ben Thanh Holdings Group with Nguyen Cao Tri as chairman sent documents to the Quang Ninh authorities proposing surveys on project investment locations in Hai Ha Industrial Park, the Mong Cai Border Gate Economic Zone and Cai Chien island.

In the Van Thinh Phat case, according to investigators, Tri agreed to let Truong My Lan join the Hai Ha project with an investment of $9.5 million. However, Lan then did not participate in the project and agreed with Tri to transfer this sum and some others to buy a 10% stake at Van Lang Group owned by Tri.