Vietnam Police Detain Ex-Bamboo Air Chairman’s Aide in Probe

(Bloomberg) -- Vietnam police detained the aide to Bamboo Airways former Chairman Trinh Van Quyet as part of a widening probe in alleged stock manipulation at real estate developer FLC Group, which he founded.

FLC accountant Trinh Thi Minh Hue, reportedly Quyet's sister, will be detained for three months, the public security ministry said in a statement on its website Monday. Police detained another executive, Trinh Thi Thuy Nga, also reportedly Quyet's sister, who is deputy general director of BOS Securities Corp., for three months for the investigation, the ministry said in a separate statement Tuesday afternoon. 

Police on March 29 detained Quyet as part of an investigation into alleged stock manipulation and concealing information in securities activities.

FLC Group was not immediately available for comment. A representative of Hue could not be immediately reached. FLC hasn't been involved with Quyet's recent stock trades and the investigation will have no affect on its operations, the company said in a March 29 statement. Neither Quyet nor his representative could be reached for comment. 

BOS Securities could not be reached for comment outside business hours and a representative of Nga could not be reached.

Hue is the biological younger sister of Quyet, Tuoi Tre Newspaper reported, citing To An Xo, security ministry's spokesman.

Nga is Quyet's younger sister, news website VnExpress reported, also citing Xo. Quyet previously served as BOS Securities chairman, VnExpresss reported.

Shares of FLC fell 2.2% at the close of the market on Tuesday, the most since March 31. The stock tumbled 26% last week.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh ordered government officials to crack down on violations in stock, bond and property markets, according to a Tuesday statement on the government's website. He directed authorities to continue to closely monitor the stock market. 

Vietnam Leaders Call for Crackdown on Stock Market Oversight

The expanding investigation into the stock sale could weigh on Bamboo Airways plans for an initial a U.S. initial public offering, said Nguyen Anh Duc, head of institutional sales at SSI Securities Corp. Quyet said last year that Bamboo planned to raise about $200 million in a U.S. IPO.

The probe, which could widen to other aspects of FLC's and Bamboo Airways' operations, is likely to affect the market's confidence in the company, Duc said. 

Vietnam's securities commission in January fined Quyet 1.5 billion dong ($65,616) for selling 74.8 million of FLC shares on Jan. 10 without disclosing it beforehand as required by law. He was suspended from trading for five months.

Vietnam Probes Aides to FLC's Quyet in Alleged Stock Violations

Quyet, 46, held 30.34% of the company's shares as of April 5, according to a filing with the Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange. Quyet's stake in Bamboo Airways is about 55.58%, according to the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam.

FLC Vice Chairman and Deputy CEO Dang Tat Thang was temporarily appointed chairman of the group and its unit Bamboo Airways last week. 

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