Vinashin may issue bonds to pay off debts

Vietnam Shipbuilding Industry Group (Vinashin) may issue bonds under the Vietnamese government's guarantee to pay off part of its massive debt, reports said, Seatrade Asia online reports.  An unnamed creditor of Vinashin said that the creditors would get 25% of the debts back in the form of bonds, according to a local report by VietnamnetBridge.  The state shipbuilder has been snowed under some $4.5bn of debts and defaulted on $600m of syndicated loan to foreign lenders since December 2010.  The creditors were also told that the government may draw up a policy to help settle another 30% of debts within one to three years, but no further details were available.  Last week, nine former senior executives of Vinashin were sentenced to jail for mismanaging the state-owned corporation. Former chairman Pham Thanh Binh was sentenced to a maximum of 20 years while the others received sentences of three to 19 years.