In today's "other newspaper" I read that the tax allowances for investments in LTFs and RTFs will be scrapped from the end of 2016.

These allowances have played a significant part in boosting investment in the SET; many people who wouldn't otherwise have bought shares have done so based upon the tax benefits (a populist scheme brought in in 2002 by Thaksin).

Surely it's good to encourage people to invest for their futures, at the same time supporting successful Thai businesses. Is the junta doing this out of a distaste for all things Thaksin? Or is there some underlying wisdom that I've failed to appreciate?

It'll be interesting to see what effect this has upon the SET.

The ability to invest in RMFs and LTFs may have finally been put into effect in 2002 under the Thaksin government, but these were not Thaksin policies - they were actually part of the IMF program's requirements to strengthen Thailand's capital markets and retirement savings rates. I doubt a plan to allow these benefits to expire in 3 years has anything to do with Thaksin, but rather is part of a broader plan to restructure overall tax rates.

Would someone explain what "LTF" and "RMF" mean and what the tax benefits are?

Long Term Fund - you invest for a minimum of 5 years

Retirement Mutual Fund - you invest annually for retirement.

There's a clear explanation of the schemes and their differences at http://www.finansa-asset.com/en/mutual-fund-investor-knowledge-category-knowledgebase-rmf-ltf.php

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