A notice from Vietnam Asset Management Company (VAMC) said that on August 21st, the company seized the secured assets of the Saigon One Tower Joint Stock Company to collect the debt.
The assets list includes the ownership and exploitation of the entire basement construction, commercial centre, office space for lease, auxiliary facilities. It also covers the ownership of the nearly-15,000-square-meter area of the high-end apartment complex belonging to Sai Gon M&C Building (new name Saigon One Tower) at 34 Ton Duc Thang, Ho Chi Minh City.
Saigon One Tower, located in the ‘golden’ land of District 1, Ho Chi Minh City, was initiated in 2007 with the scale of approximately US$256 million (converted into US$ at that time). As planned, this was a 41-storey twin tower with five basements, which was expected to be the third tallest building in Ho Chi Minh City in 2009.
However, by the end of 2011, the project was suspended after completing 80% of the work volume. Over the past six years, this project is stagnantly lying right in the heart of Ho Chi Minh City.
Recently, an architectural firm in Singapore has revealed the plans to complete a project with a similar location in 2018. The owner is Alpha King Real Estate Development JSC, whose shares are held by foreign shareholders.
The shareholders of the project include M&C Corporation (49%), Dong A Joint Stock Commercial Bank (6%), Dong A Bank Securities Company Limited (10%), Phu Nhuan Jewelry Joint Stock Company (5%). Saigontourist Company contributes the remaining 30% with the land use rights.
After that, Dong A Bank Securities Company Limited, Phu Nhuan Jewelry Joint Stock Company and Saigontourist Company one by one announced to divest from this project.
A 2012 financial report of the company said that the project was borrowing VND3,004 billion (roughly US$132.4 million), half of which was provided by Maritime Bank.
In April 2015, VAMC signed a debt buying agreement with Maritime Bank and Dong A Bank. After two years, VAMC asked Saigon One Tower to hand over the secured assets, but the company did not.
Therefore, VAMC has seized the project of Saigon M&C Apartment Complex to collect the debt.
A notice from the State Bank of Vietnam said that the debt buying agreements of VAMC with some credit institutions on the debts of the customer groups up to now had reached over VND7,000 billion (about US$331 million).
