Twenty-two banks has been under investigation by the Security Investigation Agency for allowing the Asian Commercial Joint Stock Bank (ACB) to gain an interest rate higher than the ceiling level. Photo baodautu.vn

HA NOI (Biz Hub) — The Security Investigation Agency has begun investigating 22 banks for receiving deposit money from the Asian Commercial Joint Stock Bank (ACB) at interest rates higher than the ceiling level.

The agency is under the Ministry of Public Security. The ACB bank's leaders asked its employees to send money amounting to over VND28,300 billion (US$1.34 billion) to 22 banks. This brought an interest of over VND1,160 billion ($55.2 million) for ACB, and its profit over the interest rate's ceiling was over VND240 billion ($11.4 million).

According to the Supreme People's Procuracy of Vietnam, ACB violated regulations in Article No 106 of the Law on Credit Institutions issued in 2010. However, the profit over the ceiling level of interest rates was under economic accounting and extracted for tax payment. It followed regulations and could not be determined as violation of the law.

Meanwhile, banks received deposits at interest rates higher than the ceiling mentioned in Circular No 02, which was issued by the State Bank of Vietnam in 2011.

The final results of the investigation will be announced in the near future.

Earlier on February 9, the Supreme People's Procuracy of Vietnam prosecuted Nguyen Duc Kien, former vice chairman of the founding managing board of ACB, and eight accomplices for violating the country's regulations on economic management, which led to serious consequences. — VNS