When orders show signs of suspicion, businesses need to be cautious and verify carefully through the Vietnamese Embassy and Trade Office in the region. Illustration photo: Internet

Recently, the Vietnam Trade Office in Pakistan warned of new fraud in international trade. According to the Vietnam Trade Office in Pakistan, Company A. (Vietnam) has a need to import raw materials for processing seafood for export. In May 2024, Company A. received a letter offering high-quality seafood materials at attractive prices from customer X. (Pakistan), a representative of Company Y. (Pakistan). After checking the information of Company Y. according to the website address, Company A. assessed that this was a large and reputable seafood exporting enterprise in Pakistan, so it immediately signed a contract and transferred a deposit of US $ 5,000. However, after receiving the deposit, customer X. did not deliver the goods according to the contract deadline and did not clearly answer Company A's questions.

The Vietnam Trade Office in Pakistan quickly intervened and issued a warning, but the company continued to transact with customer X. (Pakistan) and the transaction amount reached US $71,900, but the possibility of the company losing the money is very high.

For the above form of fraud, the tricks of the suspecters are to open fake accounts impersonating real companies abroad, contacting companies/commercial enterprises with import-export needs in Vietnam to conduct transactions. The suspecters use sophisticated tricks, professional impersonation to trick companies/enterprises in Vietnam into signing contracts and depositing money to gain the trust of the victim, the suspecters forged documents such as copies of B/L, copies of quality certificates, copies of certificates of origin, etc. However, after receiving the deposit from the Vietnamese enterprise, the subject disappeared, erasing all traces to appropriate the property.

Although they are continuing to support the enterprise in this case, the Vietnam Trade Office in Pakistan recommends that when carrying out import and export activities, for small amounts of money, it is possible to accept the risk, but for contracts of large value, the enterprise needs to accept the cost to go to the place to learn about the import and export partners, combined with market surveys, expanding relationships, helping to minimize risks. Through these trips, the enterprise can also find many new products, connect with many new partners, bringing benefits many times greater than the cost.

The situation of fraud and trade disputes that continue to occur is largely due to businesses being subjective and taking risks when accessing information from partners, drafting contracts that are loose and lacking in commitment. Saudi Arabia is also a potential export market, but Mr. Tran Trong Kim, Head of the Vietnam Trade Office in Saudi Arabia, said that when dealing with businesses in this region, it is necessary to pay attention to the issue of contracts.

According to Mr. Tran Trong Kim, due to difficulties in agricultural cultivation, this country needs to import more than 90% of goods, such as: rice, vegetables, tubers, fresh fruits, nuts, spices; fresh and canned seafood... In addition, there are textile products, spare parts for means of transport, furniture, charcoal, agarwood... However, the representative of the Vietnam Trade Office in Saudi Arabia recommends: when dealing with import enterprises in this region, it is necessary to sign a payment contract in the form of a letter of credit LC, with a deposit, if there is a customer paying in advance, it is even better. In particular, enterprises do not pay in advance any fees related to contract brokerage costs, invoice issuance fees, because this is a common fraudulent behavior. Along with that, when there are suspicious orders, it is recommended that enterprises be cautious and verify carefully through the channel of the Embassy and the Vietnam Trade Office in the region.

Supporting businesses, Mr. Hoang Minh Chien, Deputy Director of the Trade Promotion Agency (Ministry of Industry and Trade) said that the Ministry of Industry and Trade has coordinated with localities, industry associations, ministries, departments and branches related to Vietnam's representative agencies abroad to provide businesses with information and experience in international trade transactions. In addition, the Ministry of Industry and Trade also assigned the Vietnam Trade Office abroad to provide and update information on the market situation as well as recommendations for Vietnamese businesses. At the same time, the Trade Office will also be a bridge to help businesses verify information related to partners and customers with whom they are conducting international transactions.