HCMC – CEO Nguyen Do Lang and Board Chairman Pham Duy Hung of Asia-Pacific Securities Joint Stock Company (APEC Securities) have been detained on charges of stock market manipulation.
Also in custody are Huynh Thi Mai Dung, Lang’s wife; Nguyen Thi Thanh, chief accountant of APEC Securities; and Pham Thi Duc Viet, deputy head of the Customer Service Department.
The Hanoi City police announced on June 28 that charges have been filed against these individuals for their involvement in securities market manipulation at Asia Pacific Securities JSC, Asia Pacific Investment JSC (API), and IDJ Vietnam Investment JSC (IDJ).
In 2021, the share prices of these companies advanced strongly over a short period of time. API shares, for example, surged from around VND7,600 to nearly VND50,000 per share from August to November 2021. Similarly, IDJ rose from VND7,500 to over VND42,000, and APS witnessed a significant multiple-fold increase.
Following these surges, the stocks subsequently declined in line with the overall market downturn.
The State Securities Commission has stated that the case involves specific organizations and individuals, and it will not impact the stable and transparent operation of the Vietnamese stock market.
