Đinh La Thăng, 57, was convicted of “deliberate violation of state regulations on economic management”, his lawyer, Đào Hữu Đăng, said. Thăng denied wrongdoing, he said.

Thăng was prosecuted in connection with losses of up to 800 billion đồng (RM136 million) in a PetroVietnam investment in Ocean Commercial Joint Stock Bank.

Ocean Bank suffered heavy losses and was forcibly taken over in 2015 by the State Bank of Vietnam, the central bank.

Thăng, the highest-level politician to have been sentenced for decades, will also have to pay a fine of 600 billion dong (RM102 million), Đăng said.

The Politburo is Vietnam’s highest decision-making body. Thăng lost his position in the Politburo last year after he came under suspicion of wrongdoing.

In January, Thăng was handed a 13-year sentence after being found guilty of “economic mismanagement” at a coal-fired power plant overseen by state-owned energy firm PetroVietnam, of which he was chairman.

The People’s Court of Hanoi also handed sentences of between 15 months of probation to 16 years in prison to six other people for their involvement in the case at the trial starting on Monday last week, according to the lawyer and state media.

Đăng said it was not clear if Thăng would appeal.