WARNING from NCB: Renting, lending, purchasing and selling bank accounts against the law is illegal

Recently, the practices of renting, lending accounts, and trading bank account information have become more prevalent and increasingly intricate. Ignorance of the peril associated with this action may lead individuals to inadvertently facilitate illicit acts such as fraud, deceit, and gambling, perhaps resulting in administrative or criminal penalties in accordance with legal statutes.

1. Recognizing the act of renting, lending, and buying bank account information

Criminals utilize social networking groups and organizations to disseminate information regarding the rental or purchase of bank accounts, targeting those with less legal awareness, including students and the elderly, and employing them to establish bank accounts and/or execute transactions in exchange for compensation. These actions are unequivocally forbidden by law.

After opening an account, the account owner must hand over Internet banking login information, a registered phone SIM, a bank card, etc. to the subject.

The subject will utilize these bank accounts for illicit activities, particularly fraudulent acts of asset misappropriation. Malicious individuals execute operations to send and receive funds from victims via many accounts to obfuscate their activities, complicating the investigative efforts of authorities and financial institutions.

2. How will the acts of renting, lending, buying and selling bank account information be handled?

Under the legislation, the activities of renting, leasing, borrowing, lending accounts, and the buying and selling of bank account information may incur fines of up to VND 100 million and/or result in criminal prosecution, detailed as follows:

* According to the provisions of Clause 5, Article 26 of Decree 88/2019/ND-CP dated November 14, 2019 of the Government on administrative sanctions for violations in the monetary and banking sector (amended and supplemented by Decree 143/2021/ND-CP dated December 31, 2021 and Decree No. 23/2023/ND-CP dated May 12, 2023) for the act of: "Renting, leasing, borrowing, lending payment accounts, buying and selling payment account information" with the following quantity:

- “From 01 payment account to less than 10 payment accounts that are not yet subject to criminal prosecution criminal liability” can be fined from VND 40 to 50 million;

- “From 10 payment accounts or more but not to the extent of being prosecuted for criminal liability” can be fined from VND 50 to 100 million;

* According to Article 291 of the 2015 Penal Code, the crime of illegally collecting, storing, exchanging, buying, selling, and publicizing information about another person's bank account can be subject to a fine, non-custodial reform for up to 3 months, imprisonment for up to 7 years, and the offender may also be banned from holding a position, practicing a profession, or doing certain jobs from 1 to 5 years, or have part or all of his/her assets confiscated depending on the severity of the violation.

3. NCB recommends to Customers

* Regularly update fraud and scam tricks from state agencies, mass media, and banks, raise awareness about opening, using, and managing payment accounts, information, and personal data.

* Do not provide personal information, such as a login name, password to access electronic banking services, or OTP code to anyone, including bank employees, in any form.

* Do not rent, lease, borrow, lend, open, buy, or sell payment accounts, cards, electronic banking services, and related information to any individual or organization for any purpose.

* Regularly monitor transactions in your bank account and immediately notify the bank if you detect any unusual or suspicious transactions.

* Share this information with relatives and friends to raise awareness and avoid being taken advantage of or unintentionally assisting in fraudulent, deceptive, and criminal acts.

* The bank has the right to refuse to provide services to bank accounts that show signs/acts of violating the law or violating the agreement on opening and using accounts signed with the bank.

For any information or support related to any NCB products or services, please contact Hotline 1800.6166, NCB's website with the unique domain name: https://www.ncb-bank.vn/; or any NCB branch/transaction office nationwide.

We at NCB are grateful to our customers for their cooperation.