Capital Markets
From The Report: Thailand 2012
View in Online Reader
Thailand’s capital markets are relatively mature, with most major private companies listed on the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) or one of three smaller bourses. The SET itself is somewhat unique among regional markets as it is a semi-governmental agency that borrows several features from the mutual structure. Demutualisation has been mooted several times in the past, but the current administration has opposed the concept. Meanwhile, the Thailand Futures Exchanges is seeing more trading in complex instruments like derivatives, with gold the most popular commodity to invest in, although new contracts for silver and oil futures are likely to draw interest.
This section has interviews with Vorapol Socatiyanurak, Secretary-General, Securities and Exchange Commission; Asvini Tailanga, Chairman of the Executive Board, Thanachart Securities; and Charamporn Jotikasthira, President, the Stock Exchange of Thailand.
Articles from this Chapter
Anticipating a surge: The sector is expected to pick up after a flood-related slowdown in 2011
Increasing supply: The government likely to introduce more bonds to the marketOBGplus
The expansion and development of Thailand’s bond market continued in 2012 with an increased variety of sovereign debt instruments and longer maturities. The government’s plans for 2012 will further boost supply, and a wider range of sub-sovereign and commercial bonds are also expected to hit the market. That puts Thailand at the head of a regional trend. BY THE NUMBERS: Like its equities market, the bond market has a strong local flavour. Foreigners hold less than 10% of government bonds,…
Golden opportunities: The derivatives market is continuing to expandOBGplus
With the introduction of oil futures, the growing market for derivatives in Thailand took another step in October 2011. If the new option proves as popular as the previous year’s addition, gold futures, the Thailand Futures Exchange (TFEX) will see another big jump in trading activity in 2012. ALL THAT GLITTERS: The highlight of derivatives-trading activity in 2011 was two gold futures contracts and also the introduction of an evening trading session. It was the first full year of trading…
Divided stance: Plans to liberalise the brokerage sector are officially confirmedOBGplus
One of the wildest of wild cards in 2012 has been the question of brokerage reform in Thailand. A plan under implementation early in 2012 to deregulate broker commissions became uncertain after Finance Minister Kittiratt Na-Ranong said the plans to liberalise the sector should be reversed. As of August 2012, it appears that liberalisation has been adopted officially, but implementation of the new policy will be subject to the outcome of internal government debates. UP IN THE AIR: The future…
OBG talks to Vorapol Socatiyanurak, Secretary-General, Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)OBGplus
Interview: Vorapol Socatiyanurak What is the scope of reforms for Thailand’s securities laws and the role of the SEC? VORAPOL SOCATIYANURAK: Our mission is to enhance the sector and protect investors, while developing our capital markets to meet regional and global standards. To do this we must strengthen Thailand’s regional and economic leadership and pushing market competitiveness. The capital markets have many dimensions. The first is the private equity fund market, the market for funding…
OBG talks to Asvini Tailanga, Chairman of the Executive Board, Thanachart SecuritiesOBGplus
Interview:Asvini Tailanga How will the implementation of a new trading platform at the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) affect the market in 2012? ASVINI TAILANGA: The existing platform has been in use since 1991-92 and some adjustments were made six years ago. The current move will not only affect the speed and latency of the SET, but will also revisit a number of trading regulations. We need to see if the existing regulations need to be updated to synchronise the SET with international…
A potential merger: Consolidation of the derivatives exchanges is still on the cardsOBGplus
One of the longest-running issues cited by capital markets watchers in Thailand is the issue of the country’s two derivatives exchanges, the Thailand Futures Exchange (TFEX) and the Agricultural Futures Exchange of Thailand (AFET). Although trading volumes continue to increase and new products are in development, it has long been thought by many in the sector that these trading platforms would be better off being combined. This would allow for an improved count of some of the crucial metrics…
OBG talks to Charamporn Jotikasthira, President, the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET)OBGplus
Interview: Charamporn Jotikasthira How can liquidity be encouraged and developed? CHARAMPORN JOTIKASTHIRA: Liquidity in the Thai equity market has already improved remarkably over the past two years, and our liquidity is now among the best in the entire ASEAN region. In 2009, the Thai equity market’s trading value was 45% of that for Singapore, which is the centre for capital markets in ASEAN. Liquidity of the Thai market was as high as 95% of that of Singapore in the second half of 2010. There…
Siam Cement: Building materialsOBGplus
THE COMPANY: Siam Cement (SCC) was established in 1913 and became a listed company in 1975. SCC is a diversified industrial firm with operations in the cement, petrochemicals, paper, and building products manufacturing and distribution industries. SCC’s petrochemicals operations are its largest contributor, with more than 52% of total sales in 2011, but its cement operations produce the highest return on employed capital, at 14%. SCC has recently embarked on a series of acquisitions and investments in ASEAN member countries, where operations account for around 7% of total sales in 2011. SCC is the largest cement producer in Thailand and…
BGH: Health careOBGplus
THE COMPANY: Bangkok Dusit Medical Services (BGH) was established in 1972 and listed on the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) in 1991. BGH is now the largest private hospital operator in Thailand in terms of the number of beds, revenues from patient services and market capitalisation. BGH currently owns and manages 28 hospitals (with a total of 4200 beds), of which 26 are run under five well-known local hospital brands: Bangkok Hospital, Samitivej Hospital, BNH Hospital, Paolo Memorial Hospital and Phyathai Hospital. The other two hospitals are located in Cambodia and operate under the Royal International Hospital brand. BGH has investments…
Big C Supercenter: RetailOBGplus
THE COMPANY: Big C Supercenter, the second-largest hypermarket in terms of number of stores in Thailand after Tesco Lotus, was founded in 1993. The major shareholders are Géant International BV, which is part of the Casino Group – a well-known retailer based in France that has investments in retail businesses in many countries – and the Chirathivat Group. Big C offers a variety of goods at competitive prices across a range of modern retail outlets, which as of the end of 2011 comprised 108 hypermarkets (48 in Bangkok and Greater Bangkok and 60 upcountry), 12 Big C Markets, 51 Mini Big Cs and 50 Pure shops selling health care and beauty…
Advanced Info Service: TelecommunicationsOBGplus
THE COMPANY: Advanced Info Service (ADVANC) was established in 1989 and is the largest mobile operator in Thailand, with a 46% subscriber market share and more than 97% nationwide coverage. ADVANC has been a publicly listed company on the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) since 1991. As of March 2012 the company’s market capitalisation of approximately BT532bn ($16.97bn) put it among the top-three listed companies on the SET. The company’s major shareholders are InTouch, which has a 40.45% stake, and SingTel Strategic Investments with 23.32%. The remaining 36% is a free-float owned by institutional and retail investors. ADVANC operates…
