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Vietnam’s central bank is in the final stages of preparing a comprehensive restructuring report for the troubled Saigon Joint Stock Commercial Bank (SCB), according to local media reports. The report is based on a proposal submitted by an undisclosed investor, as authorities move to stabilize the institution at the heart of Vietnam’s largest-ever financial fraud case.
Last month, Reuters disclosed that leading real estate developer Sun Group had tabled a recovery plan for SCB. The proposal includes reimbursing nearly $26 billion in state liquidity support that the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) injected into SCB over the past two years, following a massive run on the bank’s deposits triggered by a major fraud scandal in October 2022. The repayment is expected to span 15 years.
The restructuring plan, which the finance ministry’s Dau Tu newspaper says is still in draft form, remains open to revisions pending input from other government bodies. While specific details or a timeline have not been disclosed, Reuters previously reported that the SBV had appointed Sun Group to lead the restructuring efforts.
To date, the SBV, SCB, and Sun Group have not issued official comments regarding the plan.
The SCB crisis erupted after the arrest of high-profile property mogul Truong My Lan in late 2022. Lan was later sentenced to death for her role in orchestrating a vast financial fraud involving billions of dollars in loans channeled through shell companies under her control. The fraud exposed major weaknesses in internal controls, governance frameworks, and regulatory enforcement within the banking system.
In a separate legal case concerning money laundering and the unlawful issuance of corporate bonds, Lan had her second life sentence reduced to 30 years on appeal, according to state media reports.
Since the crisis began, SCB has relied heavily on central bank liquidity injections to meet customer withdrawals and maintain solvency. The government, in collaboration with the SBV, has consistently appealed for private-sector engagement, including international investors, to assist in stabilizing the bank. However, structural constraints such as the 30% ceiling on total foreign ownership in Vietnamese banks continue to pose challenges to broader investor participation.
The SCB case underscores the importance of regulatory compliance, risk mitigation, and robust compliance management systems in safeguarding financial institutions against large-scale fraud. As Vietnam’s financial regulators work toward a recovery framework, the move reflects a growing trend across emerging markets to adopt more resilient regulatory frameworks and strengthen compliance monitoring tools to restore confidence in the banking sector.
The outcome of SCB’s restructuring will serve as a key test of Vietnam’s commitment to financial crime prevention, regulatory change management, and its capacity to manage systemic banking risks through public-private collaboration.
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