Thai market capitalisation the highest in Asean this year

Since the beginning of the year, a total of 336 mutual funds have been offered for sale, according to data released last month by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

As of July 2023, the total net asset value of mutual funds was 4.7 trillion baht, with an average annual growth rate of 0.3% over the past five years.

Since January 1 this year, there have been 22 securities offered for sale through initial public offerings (IPOs), raising 22.71 billion baht. Mutual funds investing in debt securities had the highest net asset value.

This year, 15 securities are ready for an IPO and awaiting approval, 31 securities are under consideration, and 92 securities are in the pre-consultation stage. This indicates a steady trend of fund-raising via the stock market, according to the SEC.

As for digital assets this year, one company has received approval for an initial coin offering (ICO) and 32 companies have ICO requests in the pre-consultation stage, with a cumulative fund-raising value of 2.66 billion baht through digital assets.

ICOs have become a popular way to raise funds for products and services usually related to cryptocurrency. ICOs are similar to IPOs, but coins issued in an ICO also can have utility for a software service or product.