Beleaguered bank attracts deposits of $255 mln in single day after interest hike

Nguyen Duc Lenh, deputy director of the central bank’s HCMC Branch, said Wednesday that the number of people withdrawing money before maturity from SCB has fallen.

VND6 trillion, including fresh deposits and renewal of matured deposits, in a single day is a large figure, he told VnExpress.

Crowds had been gathering at SCB’s branches since Saturday afternoon to withdraw their money because of safety fears.

The SCB and the central bank have been assuring the public that the bank is functioning normally and that all bank deposits are protected by the government.

On Oct. 8, SCB increased its interest rate for 12-month deposits by 1 percentage point to 8.55%, the highest in Vietnam.

It also raised the rates for all deposits of nine months and more by 1 percentage point.

Rumors about the impact of a board member’s sudden death and the lender’s relationship with property developer Van Thinh Phat Group spread on social media, causing a run on SCB.

But its management said Truong My Lan, chairwoman of Van Thinh Phat Group, who was arrested for alleged fraud related to issuance and trading of bonds worth trillions of dong (VND1 trillion = $41.87 million), is not have any managerial or executive position at the bank.