Thailand plans financial service agency to draw foreign funds
PM Srettha says positioning the country as a hub will help attract not only funds but also qualified workers
THAILAND said it will create a one-stop agency for integrated financial services to be more competitive in attracting foreign funds and investors, and will soon draft a law that will help position the country as a regional financial hub.
The new agency will issue licences for banking, securities, insurance, digital assets and forward contracts for foreign companies, Deputy Finance Minister Paopoom Rojanasakul said at a briefing on Friday (Jul 19). It will also deal with services for foreign businesses, such as work permits and tax incentives.
The Bank of Thailand and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) are currently responsible for oversight of most financial services, licensing and regulation, and the new agency is a way to “reform the supervision of financial businesses”, Paopoom said.
Both those agencies have been in the spotlight, with central bank governor Sethaput Suthiwartnarueput at odds with Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin over interest rates and fiscal policies, and the SEC trying to contain scandals related to publicly traded Stark Corp and Energy Absolute.
Thailand needs to improve its regulatory and legal ecosystems to achieve the goal of becoming a regional financial hub, Paopoom said.
“One-stop service (and) clarity in capital management are the key to Thailand growing into the financial frontier of the region, attracting capital, knowledgeable people to come to the country, creating benefits for the world economy,” the government said in a statement.
A NEWSLETTER FOR YOU
Friday, 8.30 am
Asean Business
Business insights centering on South-east Asia's fast-growing economies.
Srettha, who has prioritised drawing foreign investments since taking over less than a year ago, said positioning Thailand as a hub will help attract not only funds but also qualified workers.
A one-stop centre will benefit banks, investments, securities and virtual banks, spurring activities such as consultancies for legal, technology and investment services in the process.
“The plan will change our economic growth structure to a high-value services sector from manufacturing without using the state budget,” he said.
SEE ALSO
As part of the efforts to improve the local financial landscape and banking access, the government will soon grant licences for virtual banks, Paopoom said.
Although the second-largest economy in South-east Asia, Thailand’s largest publicly traded bank, SCB Xl, ranks 15th among its regional peers by market value. Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam and the Philippines all have bigger firms than SCB’s US$9.5 billion capitalisation.
Srettha’s government plans to set up the National Credit Guarantee Agency to improve loan access to small and medium enterprises within a year, Paopoom said. BLOOMBERG
Share with us your feedback on BT's products and services
