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Lam Nguyen
Lam Nguyen
SCMP Contributor
Lam Nguyen is a freelance journalist based in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. She has covered labour and environment issues. Her stories have appeared on Mongabay, Rest Of World and The Guardian.

Lee George Lam denies link to US$12.5 billion fraud by Vietnamese real estate tycoon Truong My Lan, insisting he was not part of management of Saigon Commercial Bank at the time.

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Truong My Lan, 67, was found guilty of embezzlement, bribery, and banking regulation violations for orchestrating a massive fraud using hundreds of ghost companies.

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With one of the most vibrant start-up ecosystems and fastest-growing economies in Southeast Asia, Vietnam is poised to climb the global value chain – but challenges lie in wait.

Truong My Lan ran eateries and hotels in her early career before coming under public scrutiny in a case totalling more than 10% of her country’s GDP.

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Vietnam currently has no controls on the sale and use of vapes or e-cigarettes. Bans in Singapore and Thailand are often flouted. Indonesia, conversely, legalised the devices – but imposes hefty taxes.

In Southeast Asia, the popularity of working as freelance drivers is creating a race to the bottom, amid poor terms and conditions, a saturated market and excessive platform fees.

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Amid the country’s soaring economic growth and the tendency of many high achievers to ‘brag’, many people are struggling to simply keep their heads above water.