On November 17, the Ministry of Public Security announced that the investigative police unit had concluded its investigation and formally recommended the prosecution of Thuy and 28 other individuals on charges of fraud, offering bribes, and accepting bribes.

Thuy - Chairman and CEO of both Egroup Education Group and Egame Investment and Distribution JSC - is accused of playing a central role in a scheme that used fake shares to lure individual investors. Authorities allege that Egroup had only 3.2 million legitimate shares, sold to 60 investors through 118 contracts worth just over 87 billion VND (approx. USD 3.5 million).

However, Thuy reportedly instructed subordinates to create and sell an additional 206.5 million fake shares through over 26,000 contracts to 10,063 investors.

According to investigators, 70% of the illegally raised funds were used to pay interest and principal to earlier investors - essentially forming a Ponzi-like cycle. The remaining 30% was used to repay personal debts, cover operational expenses, and fund unrelated activities. No money was invested into the education sector, as promised.

The Ministry of Public Security emphasized that Thuy acted as the ringleader, directing CFO Nguyen Manh Phu and Chief Accountant Pham Thi Thanh Tho to falsify documents, inflate Egroup’s charter capital, and fabricate revenue reports.

He also allegedly instructed Dang Van Hien, head of investor relations at Egame, to promote the investment scheme, while Phu and senior accountant Nguyen Thi Hoai Huong handled off-the-books transactions and misappropriated funds.

By late 2017, Thuy reportedly realized the investment model - based on selling shares with guaranteed interest - was unsustainable. Despite this, he continued to order his sales team not to disclose Egroup’s actual financial status or how the money was being used. He admitted that full disclosure would have caused investors to withdraw.

Facing a liquidity crisis within the Egroup ecosystem, Thuy allegedly directed staff to mobilize investor funds “by any means necessary.”

The victims in the case are individuals who believed they were purchasing legitimate equity in a thriving education business. Authorities now confirm that the vast majority of those shares did not legally exist.

In addition to Thuy, the Ministry of Public Security is recommending prosecution for 28 others, including Egroup CFO Nguyen Manh Phu and Tong Thi Kim Lien - Chairwoman and CFO of Nhat Tran Company - who is accused of accepting bribes.

Thuy was first arrested on March 21, 2024, and was later charged with additional crimes, including bribery, on December 5, 2024.

The case has drawn widespread attention due to Thuy’s high-profile image as a startup mentor and television investor, now facing criminal prosecution in one of the country’s most significant white-collar crime cases.

T. Nhung & Dinh Hieu