Rumour sparks mass cash withdrawals from rural bank
Because of a false rumour in recent days, many people have rushed to withdraw their money from the Rural Commercial Joint Stock Bank in Ninh Binh northern province. The cash withdrawn from this bank amounted up to more than 20 billion dong.
According to some officials of the Ninh Binh Rural Commercial Joint Stock Bank, the number of people withdrawing money from the bank on the afternoon July 13 reduced however has not stopped yet.
Prior to such a move, the State Bank of Vietnam-Ninh Binh branch on July 11 issued Announcement 153/NHNN-NBI stating “it is completely not true that the Ninh Binh Rural Commercial Joint Stock Bank lent US$10 million to the Tourism Investment and Development Co (RUS-InvestTur) headed by Nguyen Duc Chi to invest Rusalka Nha Trang Project.” Director Chi was arrested by police in June on an embezzlement charge involving millions of dollars.
Additionally, according to Bui Khac Son, general director of the Deposit Insurance of Vietnam (DIV), the Ninh Binh Rural Commercial Joint Stock Bank has not yet asked for any support from the SBV-Ninh Binh branch and the DIV. With total resident deposit balance of some 80 billion dong out of total deposit balance of 178 billion dong, the bank is completely able to pay for depositors.
As assessed by an official of the SBV, if people remain ignorant and withdraw money, they will be the first people who have to suffer from losses. Because most of resident deposits in the Ninh Binh Rural Commercial Joint Stock Bank are term deposits, if depositors withdraw money before matured time, in addition to fines as regulated, these depositors will have to face up losses due to difference between the deposit interest rate with the shortest term of one-month and the demand deposit interest rate of 0.5% a month.
This official of the SBV cited the lesson of the Asian Commercial Bank (ACB) happening in October 2003. That is, out of total deposit balance of the ACB of 3.5 trillion dong by that time, up to 500 billion dong was interest amount that should have belonged to depositors.
Son confirmed, “DIV took initiatives to prepare enough capital to meet expenditure demand of the Ninh Binh Rural Commercial Joint Stock Bank in case of any unexpected events.”
Regarding reasons for the aforementioned unexpected cash withdrawal, some press agencies on July 2 reported scam of Nguyen Duc Chi for Rusalka Nha Trang Project. According to these press agencies, relevant agencies, after searching the working place of the scammer Nguyen Duc Chi, seized many falsified seals and seals for three founding members of Ninh Thuan Industrial and Tourism Development Investment Co including Doan Van An, general director of Chi Linh-Hai Duong Golf Course; Truong Tu Phuong, general director of Dai An Co and Ta Ba Long, chair of the executive board of the Ninh Binh Rural Commercial Joint Stock Bank.
According to the investigation agency, Nguyen Duc Chi worked as the vice general director in charge of tourism.
After that, Ninh Binh Rural Commercial Joint Stock Bank agreed to lend Nguyen Duc Chi US$10 million mortgaged by Rusalka high-class tourism resort. However because the case was timely detected, the loan was never allocated. The reason was that Chi previously used Rusalka tourism resort to secure another loan worth 30 billion dong from another bank. Ninh Binh Rural Commercial Joint Stock Bank later was also investigated for approving such a loan to Nguyen Duc Chi.
Ta Ba Long, chair of the bank’s executive board was very surprised when learning this information, confirming, “the bank has never been allowed to transact in US dollars. Suppose the bank is allowed to transact in US dollars, the bank would not have the capacity to lend US$10 million.”
The report of the Ninh Binh Rural Commercial Joint Stock Bank submitted to inspectors of the central bank asserted “the Ninh Binh Rural Commercial Joint Stock Bank has never had any transactions in papers as well as finance with Rus-Invest-Tur and the Ninh Binh Rural Commercial Joint Stock Bank has never keep any documents of Rus-Invest-Tur. Therefore, it is not true that the bank prepares to allocate US$10 million to Rus-Invest-Tur.”
Category: Finance
