Question: It has been said that the existing regulations facilitate SJC to monopolize SJC gold bar production and trading, or refuse the trading of its own gold bars. What is your standpoint about this problem?
Answer: The aforesaid understanding is not in accordance with Decree 24/2012/ND-CP and the existing regulations on the production and trading of gold bars.
As stipulated in Decree 24/2012/ND-CP, since May 25, 2012, the State has secured the monopoly of gold bar production and SBV has been assigned by the Government to manage gold bar production, export raw gold, import raw gold for gold bar production; and all the licensed gold bar corporate producers (including SJC) should terminate their gold bars production.
In fact, nearly 90% of gold bars circulated in the gold market are branded by SJC. In order to stabilize the circulation of gold bars and save the social cost, SBV has decided to choose SJC as the SBV brand of gold bars (under the consensus of the relevant parties in line with law) and since May 25, 2012, the SJC gold bar production has been conducted exclusively by SBV.
Thus, it is not true that SJC is allowed to monopolize gold bar production as mentioned above. Moreover, since May 25, 2012, the SJC has joined other enterprises on the leveling playing field by refraining from producing gold bars. They have been only permitted to trade or refuse the trading of SJC gold bars as well as others by their own decisions in line with law.
Q: In the recent time, many gold trading stores have refused to buy bent or buckled SJC gold bars or agreed to purchase gold bars at the price of raw gold, thereby causing losses for people. Over the past few months, SJC has purchased SJC bent or buckled gold bars and requested SBV to allow the conversion of these gold bars into SJC standard ones. However, the request has not been approved. In the meantime, non-SJC gold bars have been traded in the market at the price much lower than SJC gold bars. Could you please comment on the issue?
Following the consideration for a period of time, SBV is doing its best to complete the formulation of the regulations to be issued in a matter of days in regard to the SJC gold bar production, including the conversion of SJC bent or buckled gold bars as well as other brand gold bars into SJC standard gold bars. These regulations will be applicable nationwide to all corporate and individual gold bar traders.
In a nut shell, all the above-mentioned regulations stipulate that all kinds of SJC bent or buckled gold bars as well as other standard brands will be converted into SJC gold bars if need be. Therefore, businesses and people should stay calm and refrain from rushing to sell their gold bars at low price to protect their own interests.