Vietnamese jeweler PNJ to hold extraordinary shareholders’ meeting amid market challenges

PNJ's board of directors has approved replacing its original plan to collect shareholders' opinions in writing with an extraordinary general meeting of shareholders.

A list of shareholders eligible to attend the meeting will be finalized on August 25.

The agenda will include revising the company’s 2026 business plan based on current business conditions and other matters under the authority of the shareholders’ meeting.

The company has faced turbulence since early last month when Dang Ngoc Thao, former director of PNJ’s wholly-owned gemstone certification subsidiary P-Lab, was arrested in connection with a cross-border diamond smuggling ring.

Police alleged that Thao and 21 other suspects imported more than 28,000 diamonds into Vietnam in 141 shipments since 2024, generating an estimated VND280 billion (US$10.65 million) in revenue.

Authorities seized about 1,100 diamonds during searches of 20 locations and said the investigation was continuing.

PNJ chairwoman Cao Thi Ngoc Dung assured investors during an online meeting on July 6 that 28,000 smuggled diamonds did not enter PNJ’s distribution system, stressing that PNJ only imports through official channels from Thailand and Hong Kong.

PNJ then formed a special supervisory team, hired an international firm to assess diamond quality, and launched a share buyback plan.

Since July 21, PNJ has implemented a deferred payment policy for nationwide buyback transactions, allowing customers to receive payment in five installments over 120 days or convert diamond jewelry into gold.

The company has spent more than VND7 trillion ($265 million) buying back diamonds and gold from customers, encouraging them to exchange their products for other items, including gold, instead of receiving cash.

The jewelry marker said market conditions could continue affecting its business performance and cash flow in the coming months, adding that it would closely monitor developments and adjust its measures when necessary.

PNJ also reported second-quarter 2026 financial results, with net revenue of VND8.484 trillion ($322 million) but a net loss of VND283 billion ($10.7 million).

The company said the quarterly loss mainly resulted from prudent provisioning and did not reflect any deterioration in its core business operations.

For the first half of 2026, PNJ posted net revenue of VND25.729 trillion ($978 million), up over 49 percent year on year, while net profit reached VND1.256 trillion ($48 million), rising 6.3 percent.

According to Tien Phong (Vanguard) newspaper, PNJ's outstanding bank borrowings include over VND1.42 trillion ($54 million) from Vietcombank, nearly VND1 trillion ($38 million) from BIDV, more than VND928 billion ($35 million) from VietinBank, VND200 billion ($7.6 million) from Shinhan Bank Vietnam, VND180 billion ($6.9 million) from KEB Hana Bank's Ho Chi Minh City branch, more than VND160 billion ($6.1 million) from Woori Bank Vietnam, more than VND45 billion ($1.7 million) from Siam Commercial Bank's Ho Chi Minh City branch, VND44 billion ($1.6 million) from Kasikornbank's Ho Chi Minh City branch, and more than VND5 billion ($190,000) from HSBC Vietnam.