The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has issued notifications amending the regulations related to Vayupak Fund to support offerings to the general public, to promote savings and investments while driving growth of the Thai capital market.   

On 13 August 2024, the Cabinet passed a resolution acknowledging the offering for sale of Vayupak Fund to the general public as proposed by the Ministry of Finance. The initiative aims to promote long-term savings and investments among the public and to support the development of the Thai capital market by mobilizing funds into the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET), which would in turn reduce reliance on foreign investment funds.    

Vayupak Fund plans to issue investment units totaling approximately 100 – 150 billion baht to the general public (referred to as Type A unitholders), and have them listed on the SET. Type A unitholders will receive returns in the form of dividends, within a range not lower than the specified minimum rate and not higher than the maximum rate, throughout the 10-year term. In addition, if the net asset value (NAV) declines, Type A unitholders will have the right to receive returns before Type B unitholders (the Ministry of Finance and government sector investors).  

The SEC has therefore amended the relevant regulations for Vayupak Fund, as requested by the Vayupak Fund Office and the responsible asset management company, with the key points as follows:
          (1) Allowing the sale price of Type A investment units to be set at par value (10 baht per unit), in addition to sales based on the NAV per unit;  
          (2) Establishing specific investment limit for Vayupak Fund and extending the exemption period for exceeding the investment limit that does not result from additional investments to 10 years, starting from the first trading day of Type A units on the SET; and  
          (3) Allowing the Ministry of Finance to make payments for the purchase of investment units in the form of securities or other assets (pay-in-kind).

The Notifications related to the amendments to the Vayupak Fund regulations have taken effect since 5 September 2024.

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Remark:
The two relevant Notifications are:

(1)     Notification of the Capital Market Supervisory Market No. Tor Nor. 27/2024 Re: Investment of Funds (No. 28), dated 5 September 2024.

(2)     Notification of the Capital Market Supervisory Board No. Tor Nor. 28/2024 Re: Rules for Management of Vayupak Fund (No. 3), dated 5 September 2024.