THAILAND CONSIDERS SOVEREIGN WEALTH FUND

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 BANGKOK 001753 SENSITIVE SIPDIS STATE FOR EAP/MLS STATE PASS USTR USDOC FOR 4430/EAP/MAC/OKSA SINGAPORE FOR TREASURY ATTACHE BAKER E.O. 12958:N/A TAGS: ECON EINV ETRD TH SUBJECT: THAILAND CONSIDERS SOVEREIGN WEALTH FUND REF: BANGKOK 1560 ¶1. Summary: With over $100 billion in accumulated foreign exchange reserves, Thailand is considering whether to establish a Sovereign Wealth Fund to better invest its excess foreign holdings. Bank of Thailand and Ministry of Finance officials believe they have sufficient funds available to start a small fund, but see substantial obstacles to its development and have concerns about whether a Fund is advisable. Eleven years after the Asian financial crisis, serious reservations remain about taking risks with Thailand's reserves. Thailand's reserves are predominantly generated from a build up of current account surpluses over the past few years, and officials realize these surpluses could quickly narrow or turn to deficits if domestic investment picks up as expected. In the meantime, with fewer restrictions on investing abroad, Thailand's Government Pension Fund and private investors are leading the way overseas by expanding their international holdings, primarily in foreign equities. End Summary. ¶2. The Bank of Thailand (BOT) is conducting a feasibility study into the merits of establishing a Sovereign Wealth Fund (SWF), following in the footsteps of China, Singapore, the United Arab Emirates, and other countries with substantial foreign exchange reserves. The Fund would operate as a government investment vehicle funded by foreign exchange assets and managed separately from Thailand's official reserves. In a May 15 seminar on SWF's held by the Ministry of Finance, Finance Minister Surapong Suebwonglee said Thailand should explore an SWF to seek higher returns and stabilize the economy in the medium and long term, but cautioned that more study was needed on the potential impact and benefits of a SWF. The BOT expects to have a full analysis completed within two to three months. What to do with all that money? -------------- ¶3. According to the BOT, Thailand has accumulated approximately $106 billion in foreign exchange reserves, most in just the last three years, predominantly through current account surpluses and capital inflows. Counting net forward positions, the BOT estimates that available reserves are actually closer to $130 billion. Current official reserves are approximately 40 percent of GDP, and 
4.3 times short-term external debt. Reserves are held mostly in U.S. Treasury bills, but increasingly in Euro- and yen-denominated government securities. ¶4. BoT officials estimate that Thailand has sufficient excess reserves to create a SWF up to twenty billion dollars. Dr. Kanit Sangsubhan of the Fiscal Policy Research Institute explained at the SWF seminar that the BOT would need to set aside reserves for $26 billion to back up banknotes, $21 billion for short-term foreign debt, $28 billion for long-term foreign debt, and another $10-15 billion for short-term possible outflow from the Stock Exchange of Thailand. Dr. Kanit suggested therefore that $10-20 billion could be available for a SWF, though other analysts have suggested Thailand begin with a Fund in the range of $5-10 billion. ¶5. Although Thailand appears to have more than sufficient reserves to cover its current commitments, officials realize that the tables could easily turn. Unlike SWF's in other countries whose foreign exchange holdings stem from income derived from strategic commodity exports, Thailand's come mostly from current account surpluses. Dr. Yanyong Thaicharoen of the BOT's Monetary Policy Group said the Bank expected that in the medium term the current account would turn to deficits as domestic investment increases and oil prices remain high. A series of deficits would erode Thailand's stock of foreign exchange reserves and potentially leave the country with insufficient funds to cover its commitments. As well, officials wonder whether a SWF is even necessary to enhance the range of investments. BOT officials noted that despite the baht's appreciation, in 2007 the Bank still made a net profit from their reserves. Thailand has other options to handle its excess reserves, including simply broadening its asset classes beyond sovereign bonds to also include high-grade sub-sovereign (agency) bonds or AAA-rated corporate bonds. Tell it to the monks -------------- ¶6. POLITICAL considerations have stymied past efforts to enhance the range of investments for Thailand's reserves. Eleven years after the Asian financial crisis that saw Thailand's reserves disappear in a matter of weeks, politicians and private groups have BANGKOK 00001753 002 OF 003 been wary of undertaking investments that could endanger the funds. Investment losses could quickly lose support for the somewhat riskier investments that an SWF would likely pursue. An influential group of monks that collected and donated gold to the government during the crisis have kept a particularly watchful eye over Thailand's reserves and have publicly opposed taking any steps toward riskier investments. (Note: This opposition was the main reason the Currency Act, which would have broadened the assets that the BoT could invest its reserves in to include AAA-rated agency or corporate debt, was not passed by the last parliament (see reftel)). The BOT realizes that any changes it pursues would have to be made with great transparency to allay these fears, but SWF experts also caution that too much transparency can hamper investment objectives. ¶7. In any event, a SWF is currently incompatible with Thailand's financial laws. Dr. Yanyong believes that an entirely new law would probably be necessary to create a Fund. Under the new BOT Act, the law only gave power to the BOT to manage its own assets (or the Bank's general account which is a part of the country's official reserves) but not assets in currency reserves accounts that are regulated by the Currency Act. The new Act restricts the Bank from investing in foreign assets other than gold, deposits with foreign/international institutions, foreign securities payable in foreign currencies (including securities issued or guaranteed by foreign governments, international financial institutions, international organizations, other foreign organizations), investment-graded corporate bonds, reserve tranche purchase certificates, or IMF special drawing rights. Recent changes to the BOT Act gave additional powers to the Bank to manage its assets, but the Bank is still restricted from investing in foreign equities. ¶8. Despite the obstacles, BOT officials are giving thought to how a SWF would be managed. An eventual SWF would almost certainly have a passive investment objective, expanding investments into new investment classes, but eschewing strategic investments like large stakes in foreign companies. Management would be under either BOT or a separate entity that would manage the fund under a steering committee of officials from BOT, MOF and other agencies and with assistance and advice from the investment industry. Dr. Yanyong stressed that the BOT would not completely outsource management of the fund to investment banks. Private sector shows the way -------------- ¶9. While it mulls its options, the BOT is interested in having the private sector act as the canaries in the overseas investment coal mine, building up investment experience before the government takes the plunge. Thai authorities have been careful in the past about limiting private investment outflows, particularly so after the 1997 Asian financial crisis, but are now loosening restrictions. Previously, Thai institutional investors (and only those registered under Securities and Exchange Commission supervision) could invest in offshore securities with a maximum of two billion dollars for all overseas securities investment, but this limit was increased to USD 10 billion in 2007 and is to be increased to USD 13 billion in 2008. Those Thai institutional investors include the Government Pension Fund, Social Security Fund, provident funds, mutual funds (excluding private funds),securities companies, and special financial institutions. In addition to an effort to encourage outflows to keep the currency from appreciating, the BOT also loosened rules to allow a company to invest overseas up to USD 100 million per year, from the previous USD 10 million limit, and to increase the limit on remittance of funds abroad for purchasing immovable properties to USD 5 million, from USD 1 million previously, without the BOT permission. ¶10. A recent analysis by Kasikorn Research Center showed that net flow of Thai direct investments abroad in the last five years was 118 billion baht (USD 3.7 billion),nearly doubling the cumulative investment up to 2002. In 2007 net investment hit 40 billion baht (USD 1.25 billion),the highest level in history and 58 percent over ¶2006. Through custodians, the BOT revealed that investment in foreign securities (both bonds and equities) was up 165 percent in 2007 to $6.9 billion. Much of the investment concentrated in Australia thanks to a high rate of return and stable currency. Luxembourg (the legal home of many investment funds),the U.K. and the U.S. followed as primary destinations. ¶11. The Government Pension Fund (GPF),Thailand's largest institutional investor and the most advanced among the country's investment funds, received approval to raise its level of foreign BANGKOK 00001753 003 OF 003 investments from 15 percent to a maximum 25 percent of net assets. The GPF manages 324 billion baht (USD 10 billion) in pension assets for 1.2 million civil servants. GPF's secretary general said last month that the Fund would be expanding its investments abroad in the next few months, focusing on food and property sectors. ¶12. Comment: A SWF of the size that Thailand is contemplating would be small potatoes compared to the giants managed by oil-producing nations and other countries like China and Singapore which sit on large stacks of foreign exchange. Nevertheless, there are POLITICAL and economic implications if the Fund begins making large-scale investments overseas. Given Thailand's long-standing relations with the U.S., officials are not overly worried about a negative reaction to Thai investments in the U.S. However, this may not be the case if Thailand pursues aggressive investments in its immediate neighbors, with whom the historical relationships have not always been as friendly and trusting. ENTWISTLE