By Calista Oyeoba /posted December 9, 2024
Vietnamese female property tycoon, Truong My Lan is facing a most difficult challenge of her life, as the Ho Chi Minh City Court asked her to pay the sum of $9 billion to the government if she’s to avoid execution after she was found guilty of a humongous web of financial sleaze.
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The 68 years old tycoon was one of Vietnam’s richest businesswomen. She amassed an eye-watering valuable portfolio of luxury homes, hotels and commercial properties all over the country and abroad, through an opaque chain of financial in-roads into one of Vietnamese major banks which she allegedly turned into her own personal ATM.
She had been put on death row by the Vietnamese court in April for embezzling more than $12 billion – an amount equivalent to roughly 3% of Vietnam’s entire economy. The scale of the fraud rattled confidence in an economy which hopes to woo foreign investors away from competitors such as neighboring China.
Last week, the tycoon lost her appeal against the death sentence for masterminding one of the biggest frauds in global history, in which billions vanished from Vietnam’s financial system.
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However, a glimmer of hope for a reprieve was offered Lan – if she can afford it. What’s the deal? Her death sentence could be commuted to life imprisonment if she repays three-quarters of what she earned via the fraud, judges said in their ruling, state-run VnExpress International reported.
The question is: can she find $9 billion within the window of freedom granted to save her life?
Lan’s rise to wealth began humbly, selling cosmetics with her mother at a market in Ho Chi Minh City. She later met Hong Kong investor Eric Chu, and her wealth skyrocketed after setting up real estate company Van Thinh Phat in 1992.
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However, Lan’s financial crimes have exposed notable threat in Vietnam’s financial system. The country’s ruling Communist Party has launched an anti-corruption campaign, but critics argue that more needs to be done to address the system issues that enabled Lan’s fraud.