Hanoians are increasingly turning to renting pretend Santas during the festive period. Imitation Father Christmases charge VND60-100,000 per gift delivered to one address. Hired Santa Claus services make big money in Hanoi Nguyen Thanh Tam in Ha Dong District, Hanoi, said that she had prepared gifts for her children and booked a fake Father Christmas to surprise them. She also shared the service with her neighbour to save costs. "In previous years, I used to put Christmas presents at the bottom of my children’s bed, but this year, I decided to hire a fake Santa Claus who will come to my house to give the gifts to them. The fees are quite cheap at just VND100,000," Tam said. According to Huyen Anh, a Christmas service provider, the maximum fees are often on Christmas Day itself at around VND150,000, while in the run-up to Christmas the price is just VND70,000-80,000. These fees are applied to the maxim distance of 5km and customers have to pay more for longer routes. … [Read more...] about Hired Santa Claus services make big money in Hanoi
Money
State officials steal support money from farmers
Farmers in Thanh Hoa Province are complaining that they have to give local state officials a part of the support money after their shrimp farms were destroyed in a 2017 flood. Many shrimp farms are damaged by floods in Thanh Hoa Province in 2017 Hoang Phong communal authorities started giving subsidies to farmers from January 31. About 218 households in Hoang Phong who had their farms damaged or destroyed in 2017 would receive support from the government this time. Thanh Hoa provincial authorities spent nearly VND1.2bn (USD52,700) to pay 70% of the money to the farmers. According to the households in Hoang Phong Commune, the officials take 15% of the total money. A local said, "When I came to receive VND17m (USD746), they had already deducted VND2m for travel and paper work." Another local said they lost 1.7 hectares of shrimp farms that were worth billions of VND. But they are only provided with VND5m (USD220) and the officials still took 15% of the money. Those given more than … [Read more...] about State officials steal support money from farmers
U23 football team awarded huge money
The U23 football team will be rewarded over VND23bn (USD1m) from state agencies as well as private organisations after the achievement at the AFC Championship 2018. The team will have to pay taxes on their rewards. Vietnam U23 football players celebrate a goal at the final match of the AFC Championship 2018 on January 27 in China The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Vietnam Olympic Committee gave VND3.2bn (USD140,900) to the team. They are also given VND3.6bn by the Vietnam Football Federation, VND1.5bn from Vietnam Professional Football Company. Over 20 organisations and individuals also rewarded the team with cash.According to the VFF, the total reward money to the team has reached over VND23bn (USD1m). Each player will be given a TV, a video game set, a wristwatch, an air-conditioner, two suits, two mobile phones, a year of free dairy product with many valuable items.The two most outstanding players, midfielder Nguyen Quang Hai and goalkeeper Bui Tien Dung, will … [Read more...] about U23 football team awarded huge money
Multi-national lucky money trends
The set, which consists of 52 real bank notes of 28 countries, are sold at between VND200,000-VND500,000 (US$9.09-US$22.70). The market for Tet lucky money is being transformed by different kinds of bank notes. Besides Vietnamese and US dollar small changes, there are Belarus 5 Rubles from 1992, Macao 10 Patacas from 2018 with all having the image of the dog on. Among those, the 28-country bank note set is being sold on the internet claiming they can bring luck and happiness for people. According to shop owners, they are real bank notes of countries such as the UK, the US, Japan, Australia and China with the smallest face value. They have the flag of the countries and sold along with a red envelope. Nguyen Ngoc Lan in Hanoi’s Thanh Xuan District, a trader, said that the sets have attracted lots of customers this year because they are new. Each day, around 20 customers order the set.Lan advised people to carefully consider before deciding to buy a set to … [Read more...] about Multi-national lucky money trends
HDBank signs MoneyGram deal for money transfer
HDBank signs up MoneyGram, a global provider of money transfer and payment services, to provide its customers with quick and easy international money transfer services. Photo: Courtesy of HDBank Customers can use instant money transfer services, which takes only 10 minutes to send money to 190 countries and territories around the world at reasonable cost. The cooperation is expected to bring a lot of add-ons and important services for both sides. Speaking at the signing ceremony, Rajendar Dhorkay, MoneyGram’s Regional Director for Malaysia, Brunei and Indochina, said MoneyGram expects to see continued growth in Vietnam and the larger Asia region due to the increased demand for money transfer services as more people pursue work and educational opportunities outside of Vietnam. “HDBank is a trusted and service-oriented name for Vietnamese and we are happy to be associated with one of the top banks in Vietnam. We actively work with our agents in other countries to … [Read more...] about HDBank signs MoneyGram deal for money transfer
AC Milan chief blasts money-laundering reports
Yonghong also threatened legal action against Italian dailies La Stampa and Il Secolo XIX, the two papers that published the same original story that claimed Milan prosecutors want to know if the €740 million (US$786 million) paid by Chinese investors to former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi to buy out the fallen Serie A giants last year was overvalued in a deliberate move to bring large sums of money into Italy from abroad."The AC Milan purchase process has always been carried out with the utmost transparency, compliance with regulations and correctness, with the support and advice of international financial and legal advisors," said Yonghong in a statement on AC Milan's official website."What I have read these days absolutely does not reflect the reality of facts ... We reserve the right to take all necessary legal action to best protect the image, the reputation and the financial solidity of the companies of the AC Milan S.p.A. Group."The reports in the article … [Read more...] about AC Milan chief blasts money-laundering reports
Coining it in: Bitcoin vs lucky money for Lunar New Year in Vietnam
Bitcoin has been making people fortunes in recent times, and a more tangible version of the cryptocurreny is also poised to bring some Lunar New Year cheer to Vietnamese children next month. Metallic coins with Bitcoin logos are joining the popular chocolate coins as alternatives to cash given away in red envelopes known as li xi, or lucky money, to children during Tet, the biggest festival of the year in Vietnam, which will fall in mid February. For the past few months, online shops in Vietnam have been importing coins bearing the Bitcoin logo to sell for VND80,000 ($3.5) to serve the rising demand for the currency that has helped many miners strike it rich following its boom in recent months. Bitcoin, the biggest and best-known cryptocurrency, rose around twentyfold last year, climbing from less than $1,000 to nearly $20,000, a record level which has been attributed to surging demand in China, where authorities say it is being used to channel money out of the country. A seller named … [Read more...] about Coining it in: Bitcoin vs lucky money for Lunar New Year in Vietnam
Money-laundering probe opened into AC Milan sale
Milan prosecutors want to know if the €740 million (US$786 million) paid to Silvio Berlusconi to buy out the seven-time European champions was overvalued in a deliberate move to bring large sums of money into Italy from abroad, the newspaper said.It has not immediately been possible to confirm the opening of the investigation with Milan prosecutors or lawyers for Berlusconi, the former Italian prime minister.After more than 30 years in the hands of Berlusconi, a glorious period which saw the club win 29 trophies including five European Cups, Milan were sold on Apr 13 last year to a group of Chinese investors led by Li Yonghong.The consortium took 99.93 per cent of the club's shares and also bought out its debt, which stood at €220 million on Jun 30, 2016.But the number of investors has progressively diminished in the face of difficulties in getting the funds out of China, where tougher legislation on the movement of money abroad was recently introduced.Li was … [Read more...] about Money-laundering probe opened into AC Milan sale
Transgender Vietnamese drug trafficker caught transporting narcotics for money to undergo surgery
Police in northern Vietnam have arrested a man in possession of 23,686 synthetic narcotic pills weighing approximately eight kilograms. The drugs were on their way from Ho Chi Minh City to the northern province of Hai Phong when the trafficker was busted in Hai Duong Province. The number of pills is the largest-ever single seizure by Hai Duong police officers, according to Colonel Cu Ngoc Nam, chief of its criminal division. Le Vo Thuy Vy, 25, was captured at around 5:50 am on Monday in Hai Duong’s Tu Ky District while he was sitting in a taxi. The drugs were concealed inside a handbag in the vehicle’s trunk. At the police station, Vy initially provided investigators with the fake ID of a 19-year-old man named Nguyen Dang Phat, but later admitted to being transgender. Born into a female body but identifying as male, Vy had previously traveled to Thailand to undergo a sex reassignment surgery, police discovered. In need of money for his next operation, Vy agreed to … [Read more...] about Transgender Vietnamese drug trafficker caught transporting narcotics for money to undergo surgery
PVC chairman denies misuse of money
HÀ NỘI — On the second day of a trial looking into violations at the State-owned oil group, interrogation of defendants continues with a focus on economic mismanagement during the implementation of Thái Bình 2 thermal power plant project. Defendants Đinh La Thăng and Trịnh Xuân Thanh were moved for interrogation from an isolated room to a courtroom. Đinh La Thăng, former Politburo member and chairman of the PetroVietnam (PVN), is alleged to have awarded the contract of the power plant to one of PVN’s subsidiary, PetroVietnam Construction JSC (PVC), against the law, despite knowing that PVC was struggling financially. Thăng is also alleged to have directed subordinates to sign engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) No 33 papers for the power project with PVC and given an advance payment of US$6.6 million and VNĐ 1.3 trillion to PVC under this contract, against regulations. PVC is alleged to … [Read more...] about PVC chairman denies misuse of money