Nguyễn Hòa Bình, widely known as Shark Bình, has been prosecuted and detained for allegedly defrauding investors in the AntEx blockchain project.
According to the Hanoi Police Investigation Department, Shark Bình faces two charges: Fraud and asset appropriation and Serious violations of accounting regulations.
The legal orders were executed on October 10, alongside nine others accused of the same offenses.
This comes roughly a week after police were seen repeatedly visiting NextTech headquarters — located at 18 Tam Trinh Street, Hanoi. On the night of October 7, dozens of sealed boxes of documents were loaded onto trucks and taken away. The next morning, police returned for further investigation.
At an early-October press briefing, Nguyễn Đức Long, Deputy Director of the Hanoi Police, confirmed a report from an investor in Ninh Bình Province, who claimed to have lost his $2,000 investment in AntEx.
Launched in September 2021, AntEx drew major attention when Shark Bình announced a $2.5 million investment through his Next100Blockchain fund, taking the title of “strategic advisor.”
AntEx was promoted as a comprehensive DeFi ecosystem with a VNDT stablecoin pegged to the Vietnamese dong. But soon after listing, the ANTEX token tanked — losing 99% of its value.
The project practically flatlined, and by March 2023, it rebranded to Rabbit (RAB), converting at a ratio of 1,000 ANTEX = 1 RAB.
In crypto terms, this move was seen as a “chart reset” — a way to erase a disastrous price history. But the new token RAB quickly followed the same fate, crashing to near zero.
Recently, chatter across crypto circles claims that Shark Bình personally ordered the liquidity pull, leading to the project’s collapse and investor losses.
However, Bình denied all accusations on social media, insisting he too was a victim, losing $2.5 million and reputation in the process.
The “Tech Shark” Who Once Dominated Vietnam’s Startup Scene
Before the crypto drama, Shark Bình was one of Vietnam’s most recognizable tech investors — a “shark” on Shark Tank Vietnam, backing dozens of startups in fintech, e-commerce, and media.
As a second-year student at Vietnam National University, he founded Peacesoft (2001) — the seed that grew into NextTech. Starting with just one employee, he built NgânLượng.vn, one of Vietnam’s earliest digital payment systems.
After facing fierce competition, Bình pivoted his strategy in 2014, transforming Peacesoft into NextTech Group, described as a “comprehensive digital transformation ecosystem.”
His guiding quote at the time:
“If you can’t win on one battlefield, open a new one.”
NextTech expanded into four core sectors:
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Fintech (Ngân Lượng, mPOS, VIMO)
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E-commerce & logistics (Boxme, NextSmartShip)
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O2O services like ride-hailing app FastGo
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Startup investment through domestic tech funds
By 2020, NextTech operated in seven countries, with over 20 subsidiaries, often dubbed “Vietnam’s mini Alibaba.”
Projects like NgânLượng.vn even made Red Herring’s Top 100 Asia Tech Companies list.
Outside of business, Bình also caught public attention for his high-profile second marriage to a famous actress, keeping his name trending far beyond the tech and startup scene.
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