Options for investing Thai baht

[Keith5588]

 

Hi, I have most of my savings and investments in the UK where it is easy to obtain over 4% interest in a bank fixed interest savings account, or invest in mutual funds or stocks & shares.

It seems that once you have money in Thai baht in a Thai bank account the banks only offer about 1% interest in a fixed account.

This is the limit of my knowledge and why I am writing this post to hopefully get some help.

 

I have a UK HSBC bank account and intend to ask HSBC Thai bank if I open an account with them will I be able to invest the Thai baht in say mutual funds.

I think I have also read that you can invest in funds / the stock market via Kasikorn bank?

 

So if possible to invest Thai baht in the worldwide stock market does anyone know if the terms and conditions /charges are similar to the same investment via a UK company?

 

Thanks in advance

Keith

[gamb00ler]

The Thai baht is not a widely used currency outside of Thailand.  It is very unlikely that any financial institution outside Thailand will offer anything denominated in baht.

 

You can get up to 1.5% from SCB EZ Savings account but currently limited to a max of 1M baht.  

[GarryP]

All of my savings and investments were made in Thailand. I have invested in numerous mutual funds over the years, some good, and some bad, but I have averaged more than 4% per year (including overseas funds such as S&P500, global technology Fund, etc. As to costs, I have no experience with investments made in the UK or through offshore brokers, however, I have heard that the charges are quite a bit lower than the Thai brokers/fund managers. Having said that, I started making my investments while in full time employment in Thailand, so I am not sure if it is available to retirees, but don't see why not.  

[FriscoKid]

http://boom.com/en/ - Well established broker in HK. Lets you trade in various equity markets including Thai stocks and possibly Thai ETFs as well. Best thing, never have to bring the money into Thailand. 

[Keith5588]

Thanks for your comments @GarryP

Can I ask if you invest in the mutual funds via one of the Thai banks or is it a separate investment company'?

 

[phetphet]

The way things are going, you might be better off buying gold.

[Digitalbanana]

Just open an international brokerage account with direct access to US markets, the most liquid market in the world, nothing else compares. There is no need to trade thro Thai accounts, many only let Thai nationals do so anyway.

[Keith5588]

Thanks for all the comments.

I have just sold my house STC in the UK and in a few days will be returning to Thailand, the plan is to spend the rest of my life in Thailand.

I want to transfer money from the UK partly to avoid inheritance tax at a later date. At the moment I do have some Sterling based funds, a high % invested in the US, some Japanese funds etc. 

To keep things simple (for Last Will and Testaments) I would like to to just have my assets in the UK or Thailand, no other country. I was hoping to be able to have some Thai baht based funds invested in the US etc. Maybe this is impossible?  Maybe I am writing nonsense as I admit that I do not fully understand what is available.

Cheers

Keith

   

[Gaccha]

19 hours ago, Keith5588 said:

can invest in funds / the stock market via Kasikorn bank?

This seems to be limited to Thais only.

 

19 hours ago, Keith5588 said:

if possible to invest Thai baht in the worldwide stock market does anyone know

Just 10 years ago this would have been almost impossible. But thanks to Fintech (the finance technology revolution of the last 10 years) you do have some limited options.

 

"Stashaway" opened a branch in Bangkok a few years back (2022?). And this is the option I'd use in your position (i.e. want to keep money in Thailand to keep things simple but want access to the World's ETFs and mutual funds). 

 

Obviously it is always wiser to follow the ABC rule when an expat (live in A come from B invest in country C) and it is also always wiser to invest in a first-tier country (e.g.Singapore or Hong Kong) to ensure your money is safe. But obviously only you can determine your priorities.

 

19 hours ago, Keith5588 said:

intend to ask HSBC Thai bank if I open an account with them will I be able to invest the Thai baht in say mutual funds

 

I doubt this is possible. HSBC does not have regular customer account options anymore. Although they have recently opened premier customer account option in Bangkok. But I don't think this offers mutual funds etc. to foreigners.

 

A basic problem you face is that regulations restrict where you can invest. As you've probably discovered you will not be able to make greater investments in the UK if you are a resident in Bangkok, although you will be allowed to keep investments already made in the UK. These stifling rules can be very frustrating. Again, the typical solution is to put money in the more 'relaxed' locations of Singapore or Hong Kong.

 

All of this can seem tiresome but compared with 15 years ago this is absolute paradise. Back then the only real options for international investments were insurance company based investments which were often dreadful. The other options were to invest in local mutual funds etc with often pitiful returns.

 

[save the frogs]

On 8/9/2025 at 4:45 AM, GarryP said:

I have invested in numerous mutual funds over the years, some good, and some bad, but I have averaged more than 4% per year (including overseas funds such as S&P500, global technology Fund, etc.

 

Exactly. Some good, some bad.

You will NEVER get nothing but good mutual funds.

 

Also, mutual funds are not backed by anything.

Fixed deposits at 4% in your home bank are usually backed by the Govt, in case sth happens.

 

I recommend that people stick to their hassle free guaranteed 4% returns in their home bank and not get too greedy. The stock market / mutual funds is GAMBLING, not investing. No fund manager will continually pick funds that garner 10% year after year. It's a LIE and will cause you a bunch of headaches. 

 

 

 

[Lacessit]

Rule #1 of investing is never invest in something you don't understand.

 

I understand value stocks in Australia. I would not know my arse from my elbow when it comes to the Thai stock market.

 

Stick to what you know.

[GarryP]

14 hours ago, Keith5588 said:

Thanks for your comments @GarryP

Can I ask if you invest in the mutual funds via one of the Thai banks or is it a separate investment company'?

 

Mainly BBL (Bualuang), SCB, UOB, Eastspring. There are loads of other investment brokers, but I was just lazy as I already bank with the first three.  Having said that, the vast majority (85-90%) of the mutuals I hold are in overseas based masterfunds, e.g. I hold B-Innotech with Bualuang, where the master fund is "Fidelity Funds - Global Technology Fund, Class YACC-USD", SCBS&P500E (master fundiShares Core S&P 500 ETF. Doing it my way increases the expenses, so investing directly would be more cost effective. Luckily, there are now options available to invest directly in the master funds from Thailand, I just have never got round to it.

 

     

[Digitalbanana]

11 hours ago, Keith5588 said:

I would like to to just have my assets in the UK or Thailand, no other country.

Holding assets can often be dependent on your physical home address rather than nationality. If you sold your home in the UK and have no other address there, then maintaining an account in the UK would need looking at. Using an international service can get around this.