Bamboo Airways owes director $329M

By Anh Tu May 9, 2023 | 05:06 pm PT

A Bamboo Airways aircraft prepares to land at Noi Bai International Airport in Hanoi. Photo by VnExpress/Giang Huy

Bamboo Airways owes one of its directors, Le Thai Sam, almost VND7.73 trillion ($329.50 million) as of April 10, according to a meeting on Tuesday.

Sam, who became a member of the board in July last year, will soon receive a 21.7% stake from FLC, which has been operating the airline since the beginning, according to a document made public at the Bamboo Airway’s extraordinary shareholders’ meeting.

As he already owns a 12.5% stake in the airline, the transfer from FLC will increase his ownership to more than one-third of the carrier.

Since last year he has been lending the company cash at zero or low interest rates and required no collateral to ensure the company could continue its operations despite many difficulties after its founder Trinh Van Quyet was arrested on stock manipulation charges.

Sam, 59, has 30 years of experience in property, finance and banking. He used to be one of the directors of the construction firm Development Investment Construction (DIC).

Shareholders of Bamboo Airways on Tuesday approved the company’s proposal to issue more shares to increase its charter capital by 62% to VND30 trillion.

The company will look to sell the shares to strategic investors with deep pockets who are willing to lend the company at least VND1 trillion.