Shark Binh Faces 10-15 Years in Prison for Alleged $13 Million Money Laundering

Nguyen Hoa Binh, 45, a prominent Vietnamese businessman widely known as 'Shark Binh' from the television show 'Shark Tank Vietnam,' is facing a potential prison sentence of 10 to 15 years for alleged involvement in laundering approximately 320 billion VND (around $13 million USD). This accusation is linked to a larger fraud scheme orchestrated by Pho Duc Nam, also known as Mr. Pips, which defrauded investors of an estimated 1.6 trillion VND (about $94 million USD). According to the indictment from the Hanoi People's Procuracy, Binh, as the chairman of the payment platform Ngan Luong, allegedly directed the opening of multiple e-wallets at intermediary payment units. These e-wallets were used to receive funds from investors and were connected to Pho Duc Nam's trading platforms. The indictment states that Binh oversaw operations and decided on fee structures for customers, with specific instructions to report large clients or those requesting special discounts to him. Between 2020 and 2021, Pho Duc Nam established several forex trading platforms, including DK Trade, ASX, ACX, and Sea Investing, and requested Ngan Luong's payment system to continue its intermediary role. During this period, Ngan Luong's e-wallets became subjects of investigation, with the company repeatedly receiving requests for verification from law enforcement agencies. However, the indictment alleges that Binh, despite knowing that Pho Duc Nam's forex platforms showed signs of illegal operation, instructed his staff not to provide information about the actual e-wallets. Instead, they were told to create fabricated deposit and withdrawal data from a different Ngan Luong e-wallet to respond to the authorities. Furthermore, Ngan Luong employees are accused of photographing official inquiry documents and sending them to Pho Duc Nam's side to coordinate a plan for falsifying data. After Pho Duc Nam's team revised the transaction data, the documents were sent back to Ngan Luong to finalize the response letters. These letters were reportedly reviewed by Binh before being signed by the general director. The prosecution contends that these actions were intended to conceal the activities of the actual payment wallets and hinder the investigation into the flow of funds. From June 2020 to September 2022, 232 victims transferred nearly 320 billion VND into these payment wallets, which were then channeled through multiple bank accounts under the name of Ngan Luong before being deposited into the forex platforms operated by Pho Duc Nam. Consequently, Shark Binh is accused of laundering 318.9 billion VND. Authorities consider this case to be the largest fraud scheme in Vietnam within the forex and securities sectors. In addition to this case, Nguyen Hoa Binh is also being detained in connection with the 'AntEx' cryptocurrency project, facing three charges: 'Fraudulent Appropriation of Property,' 'Violation of Accounting Regulations Causing Serious Consequences,' and 'Tax Evasion.' The AntEx project, which received a $2.5 million investment in 2021, saw its token value plummet by 99%, leading to the closure of its website and social media channels. The project was later renamed Rabbit (RAB), but its token continued to fall by 95%, rendering it virtually worthless. Nguyen Hoa Binh is a notable entrepreneur in Vietnam's technology and e-commerce sectors, founder of the NextTech ecosystem, which includes brands like Ngan Luong.vn, BoxMe, mPOS, and Vimo. He gained widespread recognition as a 'shark' on 'Shark Tank Vietnam' for his sharp and direct commentary on startups. Source: BBC Vietnamese