Temasek Insists Shin Deal Legal

[george]

Temasek insists Shin deal legal

SINGAPORE: -- Temasek Holdings says it is cooperating fully with the investigation by Thailand's Commerce Ministry over its acquisition of Shin Corp earlier this year.

In an email reply to Channel NewsAsia, the investment firm stressed that it had complied with all laws of Thailand.

The comment followed Thai media reports that an initial probe by the Commerce Ministry showed significant evidence that Thai laws may have been violated.

The probe into Temasek's S$3.8 billion acquisition of Shin Corp in January started last month.

It centred around Kularb Kaew - one of the Temasek's partners in the takeover.

Investigators were seeking to ascertain whether Kularb Kaew was a Thai company or a Temasek nominee.

Temasek and its partners now hold a 96% stake in Shin Corp.

Thailand's laws limit foreign holdings in telecom firms to 49 percent.

--Agencies 2006-09-12

[cclub75]

Yes mister Temasek : the deal looks legal. On the paper. And for simple minds.

You don't have , on your own name, more than 49 % of the company. Great.

But all your dirty tricks with your friend Thaksin are so huge, that even a school boy could say that you have violated the law, eventually.

The main proof :

Your thai nominee has agreed to get only... 3 % of the dividends ! He "bought" prefered shares (a class of share that have less power). And the guy, to defend himself, said : "it's good, it's almost the interest rate the banks are giving for deposit".

Ah ah ah ah Your thai nominee is such a bad businessman.

And the last blow : your little thai nominee of course, was not rich enough to make such a wonderfull -and expansive- deal (51% of the share, and 3 % of dividends ! that's a deal brother)... So you gave him... the money... to "buy" the shares. On your behalf.

This is the definition of a nominee.

Of course, the story is so huge, it's now a matter of national security for the current care taking government ! They are doing all they can to stop the enquiry and the legal actions.

Actually the whole current political crisis, has only 1 origin : your deal with Thaksin.

That's the only reason that he wants, that he NEEDS ABSOLUTLY to stay prime minister, win the elections. To protect your deal. Because any other government or independant justice would send you back to Singapore and would break this deal that is so obviously illegal (regardint thai laws).

Bye bye Mister Temasek. Next time don't listen to little thai dictators who tell that every thing will be OK, sabai, sabai "i control the situation".

Nothing is less true.

[womble]

Yeah that's an absolute classic, 3% on an investment that size.

This deal is gonna go lemon as soon as Thaksin is out.

[cclub75]

Oh my god, this country is really funny.

Now, it's the big panic.

They are scratching their noses and their arse and what do they see ?

ALL THE MAJOR foreign companies in Thailand, use nominees.

But of course, nobody knew that before.

More seriously : it's going to be the last line of defense for Thaksin :

-"you can not break my Shin deal, otherwise the whole thai economy collapse overnight"

It's a catch 22 situation. In front of the enormity of their "discovery" (what a bunch of hypocrits) everybody, even opposition, would agree to adapt the laws to the reality. And Thaksin would get away.

Shin probe generates panic

Local law firms flooded with queries

POST REPORTERS

Thai and international law firms are receiving a flood of new business inquiries as foreign companies grapple with the possible need to change their shareholding structures in the wake of an ongoing investigation into nominee companies.

The Business Development Department has reportedly concluded that the Singapore government's investment arm, Temasek Holdings, had violated the Foreign Business Act and telecom laws by controlling more than 49% in the local telecom giant Shin Corp.

But the report has remained sealed pending a broader inquiry into the use of nominee companies by foreign investors.

http://www.bangkokpost.com/Business/13Sep2006_biz34.php

Edited September 12, 2006 by cclub75

[John K]

I have a few questions on this.

First what will happen to Thaksin if this is found to be in violation of Thai law?

Second if Thaksin stages a coup to end democracy does any of this even matter?

[sriracha john]

SHIN CONTROVERSY

Surin's role raises questions

Kularb Kaew's major shareholder in the spotlight over whose money he used to buy his stake and who he represents

Details of the Shin Corp sale investigation revealed in The Nation yesterday covered many issues, but also raised another question of whether Surin Upatkoon, a major shareholder of Kularb Kaew Co Ltd, was a nominee, and if so, who did he represent, Democrat Party deputy secretary-general Korn Chatikavanich said.

Korn told reporters yesterday that Surin's role in Kularb Kaew is intriguing.

He said the Bt2.7 billion used to buy the 68 per cent share in Kularb Kaew was wired to Surin from Fairmont Investments Group, which was registered in the British Virgin Islands. Ample Rich Investments and Win Mark, two companies reportedly involved with the Shinawatra family, were also registered there, he noted.

"There is a question of whether the company is involved with the family's sale of its shares [in Shin Corp]. Moreover, Surin's investment came from the company [Fairmont], transferred to him by Greenland Co Ltd, who authorised the money transfer authority to Surin. What is Surin's role in this deal and who is the real owner of the Bt2.7 billion? Is Surin simply a nominee?" he asked.

An observer who has closely followed the Temasek-Shin Corp takeover remarked that if Surin is a nominee, he should not represent Temasek but someone else who wanted to avoid the foreign shareholding problems, which could have disrupted the Temasek-Shin Corp deal.

"Temasek strictly follows good governance practices when it invests in any company in any country. All information is straightforwardly revealed on its website. Having a company in the British Virgin Islands finance a nominee's deal does not fit its profile," she said. "Even Anderton Investments - a shareholder of Aspen Holdings (which directly owns Shin Corp) is registered in Singapore."

She is convinced that Surin is a nominee. "If he truly wanted to invest in Shin Corp, why he didn't finance the investment with his own money, from his own bank account. Who are the ultimate shareholders of Greenland and Fairmont? It couldn't be Surin. If he is the owner of the two companies, it makes no sense why he needs Greenland's permission to wire money from Fairmont to his bank account."

The remarks followed the leak of the Commerce Ministry's Business Development Department's nominee investigation report.

The department found that Surin financed his investment by the money from Fairmont. In the report, Surin received Bt2.72 billion from HSBC Bank. The bank informed the department that it was asked by Surin to transfer the money on March 10 from an account belonging to Fairmont, which has Greenland Co as its authorised manager. Greenland transferred that authority to Surin.

The report also showed the money trail indicated that Temasek could have bankrolled Pong Sarasin and Suphadej Poonpipat's investments in Kularb Kaew. Bank documents showed Temasek's unit Cypress Holdings, transferred money to Kularb Kaew for Pong's investment and it also guaranteed a loan from Siam Commercial Bank to Suphadej.

To Korn, now that the report concludes that Kularb Kaew is Temasek's nominee, it was unnecessary for the Commerce Ministry to appoint a new committee - chaired by deputy permanent secretary Yanyong Phuangrach - to investigate the issue. He lamented that Commerce Minister Somkid Jatusripitak was simply buying time by appointing the committee.

"We're concerned about the ministry's role. Now that the finding shows an illegal transaction, why did the ministry not take any action. Instead, it is buying time. The ministry should follow the legal procedures and should block out political interference. If the Commerce minister does not take action, he could be held negligent and could face legal action," Korn said.

Democrat spokesman Ong-art Klampaiboon said yesterday that Somkid should not distance himself from the issue and he should take full responsibility for it.

"Somkid has urged all to improve good governance. Now, Kularb Kaew is a card to prove Somkid's ethics," he said.

Korn said following the finding, the authorities needed to consider if other companies involved with Shin Corp would be branded foreign companies and if the finding would affect their business operations. Another point of concern is whether the Temasek-Shin Corp takeover should be nullified.

- The Nation

-----------------------

business, as usual, for thaksin and his gang of crooks... sometimes referred to as a "Cabinet"

[Ricardo]

Draft new tourism slogan - "Visit Thailand - a wholly-owned subsidiary of Singapore Ltd".

Of course, there is nothing inherently wrong, in some non-strategic local companies being more than 49%-owned by foreigners. Except that it happens to be illegal here, and this deal was connived-at, by the serving PM of the country. A slight conflict-of-interest ? Surely Not.

[marshbags]

I have a few questions on this.

First what will happen to Thaksin if this is found to be in violation of Thai law?

Second if Thaksin stages a coup to end democracy does any of this even matter?

Not a lot.

Toxin will already be out of the country when the minipulation of the constitution and it,s laws, along with his business ethics prior to the deal come out.

He is ( in my view ) at this time shifting as much of his assets abroad he can get his hands on, along with most of his treasured possessions ready for relocation.

The TRT are fully aware of this and are assisting him to achieve a smooth exit while trying to reduce the damage / fallout factor.

It,s already a done deal on the next TRT leader and my betting is on Somkid taking control.

I would have no problem with his appointment as i reckon when the change over is finalised and confirmed, there will be many changes for the better and a cleansing of the TRT party.

Toxin is no longer in the position of controllling the military / police to such an extent that he will be able to implement such an action. ( coup )

Also Thai society is no longer living in the past, has a different mind set, are educated and will not tolerate it as in years gone by.

Another dictator comes to mind when i see Toxin by the name of Marcos and he will suffer the same fate and karma, please ................................................................................

......... who ever the power that be is.

As for coming back after a year ?????? , forget it because once his past misdeeds and abuse of power start to surface, this in turn will consequently lead to much more abuse being exposed than anyone of us can imagine.

In my humble opinion

marshbags

Edited September 13, 2006 by marshbags

[Loaded]

Thaksin owns a personality that few of us would understand. it's motivated 100% by greed and he will do anything and everything to maintain power and the ability to suck this country. Look at Marcos, it took the US to tell him to leave before he packed his bags and he had sucked his country a lot longer and deeper than Thaksin.

Thaksin will be around for a quite a few years more.

[steveromagnino]

Oh my god, this country is really funny.

Now, it's the big panic.

They are scratching their noses and their arse and what do they see ?

ALL THE MAJOR foreign companies in Thailand, use nominees.

But of course, nobody knew that before.

Many do use nominees, but certainly not all. Some foreign companies operating here have ethics

Most however, don't do business in what is perceived to be a strategic industry expressly protected to prevent majority foreign ownership, and is not owned by the PM and has not been significantly protected/given a headstart by govt regulation for 10 years. And most investment vehicles buying these sorts of things are not another govt's private playtoy.

Kind of like how America was all worried when Middle Easterners bought one of their ports; they didn't mind selling them Coach bags and other companies, but just not a port. TV stations, telcos and airlines can be strangely emotional things for some countries.

I suppose the main compensation for Thailand is that they appear to have massively overpaid for Shin.

Thus the contention will be that 'we will investigate when there are express protections for certain industries e.g. telecoms, airline' and the rest of the companies can continue to plug along. Otherwise, yep, all hel_l is going to break loose with the myriad of MNEs who use nominees in a fairly transparent way (i.e. far easier to spot that even this deal).

And K. Korn of the Democrats is an ex investment banker; he can see how these sorts of deals are put together, so is going to push as hard as he can on this Shin deal.

Edited September 13, 2006 by steveromagnino

[Old Man River]

Oh my god, this country is really funny.

Now, it's the big panic.

They are scratching their noses and their arse and what do they see ?

ALL THE MAJOR foreign companies in Thailand, use nominees.

But of course, nobody knew that before.

Many do use nominees, but certainly not all. Some foreign companies operating here have ethics

It's really not a question of ethics. MNC's investing in new areas want to do business in the established way that business is transacted in these foreign countries. When Thai partners are required, the nominee basis is the established method in Thailand. It is a loophole in the law and attorneys have never considered it illegal. There were various structures used to accomplish the nominee status of which preferred stock was only one, albeit one of the most popular used. Also, don't be put off by the multiple layers of ownerships and different type of securities as this is normal in these transactions which also take into account tax ramifications.

[Plus]

In fact on Monday The Nation run a completely different story in its business section - Kularb Kaew is not an issue at all, it's all perfectly legal and there's nothing unusual about it.

The crux of the matter is who or what is considered nominee. Kularb Kaew is not a nominee in "business as usual" sense. Its Thai partners are not nobodies, maids or drivers. Any one of them could walk into any bank and get a loan to finance this investment. They could have bargained for a better deal, but it's either this or nothing situation.

[bkkexplorer]

If the deal was reversed and it was the PM of Singapore that sold off shares of a particular company he was attached to, do you think the people of Singapore will blame the foreign investor or their PM?

Yes, I know the laws are different but you'd think when dealing with a PM of a country all credibility is there. This case is a joke. Sadly, i think Thailand has alot more to lose if they go after a foreign investing company who's businness is exactly that. To invest in other companies...

[sriracha john]

More foreign companies in hot water over nominees, including some huge ones:

Thailand to probe 16 firms for nominee breaches

BANGKOK - Thailand will investigate 16 companies to find out whether they are nominees for foreign firms trying to avoid a 49-percent limit on foreign ownership of Thai firms, Commerce Minister Somkid Jatrusripitak said on Thursday.

The Business Development Department would gather information about the companies, including Cemex (Thailand), Siam City Cement and UCOM , in a probe he did not believe would affect investor confidence, Somkid told reporters.

"The department will collect data for a preliminary scrutiny following complaints from several groups," he added without saying how long the investigation would take.

Foreigners are prohibited from owning a majority of shares in Thai firms involved in strategic industries, including telecommunications.

Nominees of foreign firms face a three-year jail term and/or a fine of up to 1 million baht ($27,000) if found guilty of owning more than 49 percent of a Thai company.

Cemex (Thailand) is a unit of Mexico 's Cemex , while Siam City Cement is controlled by Swiss cement giant Holcim . Norway's Telenor ASA controls Singapore-listed Total Access Communication through United Communication Industry (UCOM).

Others under investigation include Cen Car Co Ltd, owner of Carrefour stores, Ek-chai Distribution System Ltd, which operates Tesco Lotus stores, DHL Logistics (Thailand), Hutchison-CAT Wireless Multimedia and Asia Aviation Ltd Co.

The companies were not available for immediate comment.

The Thai government has been under pressure to investigate the legality of company structures following a probe into shareholders of top telecoms group Shin Corp after a $3.8 billion takeover by Singapore's Temasek Holdings [TEM.UL] in March.

Last month, the ministry set up a committee to investigate the Shin Corp deal, which involved four companies -- Kularb Kaew Co, Cedar Holdings, Aspen Holdings and Cypress Holdings -- in a complicated structure.

On Thursday, Shin Corp shares closed down 0.8 percent at 30.75 baht, while UCOM dropped 1.1 percent to 44 baht.

Siam City Cement fell 1.7 percent at 236 baht while the main Thai stock index was 0.5 percent higher.

TAC shares were up 1.4 percent at $4.3 in Singapore. ($1 = 37.33 Baht)

- Reuters

Edited September 15, 2006 by sriracha john

[John K]

If it is so they probably decided to follow Thaksin’s lead. Looks like just another dance with the devil.

[bulmercke]

Oh my god, this country is really funny.

Now, it's the big panic.

They are scratching their noses and their arse and what do they see ?

ALL THE MAJOR foreign companies in Thailand, use nominees.

But of course, nobody knew that before.

More seriously : it's going to be the last line of defense for Thaksin :

-"you can not break my Shin deal, otherwise the whole thai economy collapse overnight"

It's a catch 22 situation. In front of the enormity of their "discovery" (what a bunch of hypocrits) everybody, even opposition, would agree to adapt the laws to the reality. And Thaksin would get away.

Shin probe generates panic

Local law firms flooded with queries

POST REPORTERS

Thai and international law firms are receiving a flood of new business inquiries as foreign companies grapple with the possible need to change their shareholding structures in the wake of an ongoing investigation into nominee companies.

The Business Development Department has reportedly concluded that the Singapore government's investment arm, Temasek Holdings, had violated the Foreign Business Act and telecom laws by controlling more than 49% in the local telecom giant Shin Corp.

But the report has remained sealed pending a broader inquiry into the use of nominee companies by foreign investors.

http://www.bangkokpost.com/Business/13Sep2006_biz34.php

The above link doesn't work. The one below should.

This is an explosive story and is sure to have wide reaching ramifications on business here - particularly those businesses with foreign 'partners'.

http://archives.mybangkokpost.com/bkkarchi...mp;click_page=8

Edited September 17, 2006 by bulmercke

[cclub75]

This is an explosive story and is sure to have wide reaching ramifications on business here - particularly those businesses with foreign 'partners'.

It won't.

As I said, all the foreign companies in Thailand, that are working within or around the "forbiden or regulated activities list" use some kind of nominees. It's obvious.

Who would invest big money in a venture without controling it ? Can you imagine Temasek spending a total of 4 billions USD to buy a group and leave the control locally ?

Only the sweet thai government can think like this, because it's written in thai law (with this very special mind : if it's written in the law, then of course nobody will go against the law, because it's written)

But anyway, everybody knows. Opposition as well.

This is why nothing will happen.

The government is just playing silly, gaining some time (now they are investigating a total of 16 companies... plus defining the word "service" and "nominee")... But it will go nowhere.

[womble]

Investigating another 16 companies is textbook Thaksin. It like a school bully that because he can't have the toy, he'll break everyone elses so they can't play with there's eigher.

Basically Thaksin wants to make sure that if he is punished, so to are his enemies.

The other advantage is that by investigating so many other companies, he reduces the amount of staff working on the shin case and slows down the process of investigation. He also gets to dilute the news which takes some of thye heat off Shin, and most cleverly of all he makes it seem as if everyone is doing it, including many other prominent businessman and businesses, which makes him look as he isn't really doing anything that unusual or wrong.

The thing is although it may help create this image to the information deprived north easterners, to anyone who knows just how devious he has been with the sale it only solidifies their views that he is constantly trying to cover up the truth behind the sale.

[Tony Clifton]

And they keep yapping about boosting foreign investor confidence

I sometimes wonder if he'd rather be PM of Thailand or Governor of a new Chinese province.

[bulmercke]

O.K. then cclub75 -

How come the Commerce Ministry's Business Development Department are deliberately sitting on their findings that show that Shin Corp. and Temasek acted in violation of Thai laws?

They know very well that this is an explosive issue and that Shin and Temasek are on extremely shaky ground - even if there are scores of other companies with a substantial foreign investment - through appointed nominees - in a similar situation.

The Shin sell-off is now under ever increasing scrutiny because of Thaksin and his evident unpopularity - the whole thing has become very, very political!

I doubt Temasek ever imagined the terrible scenario that they could now possibly face......DEAL VOID.....

I think this is why Thaksin is desperately clinging onto power. To protect his assets. And when Thaksin is eventually out of power this deal will be a 'lemon'.....and a future government will go vigorously after these assets realising a legal precedent. Any other companies found to have violated these laws will probably be excused and the law amended accordingly.

Edited September 17, 2006 by bulmercke

[englishoak]

I expect he will be around for quite a while yet as his pockets are deep and Thailand is not exactly known for it's honesty. Lets face it if you can bribe a policeman with 20 bht it's likely to be possible to swing anyone for a few million bht !

Bottom line is Mr T is now on the slippery slope I and expect to see more and more desperate measures in order to cling on to power. I really do believe he would do almost anything to keep control. That is when he could cross the line of no return. Desperate people make more & more mistakes....... Toxin is no different.

Edited September 17, 2006 by englishoak

[bulmercke]

I expect he will be around for quite a while yet as his pockets are deep and Thailand is not exactly known for it's honesty. Lets face it if you can bribe a policeman with 20 bht it's likely to be possible to swing anyone for a few million bht !

Bottom line is Mr T is now on the slippery slope I and expect to see more and more desperate measures in order to cling on to power. I really do believe he would do almost anything to keep control. That is when he could cross the line of no return. Desperate people make more & more mistakes....... Toxin is no different.

Let's not forget the law of unintended consequences. Who would have ever thought that a special committee set up by the Commerce Ministry would be deliberately sitting on the findings of a report fearful of the damgage it would inevitably do to our 'illustrious' leader and his ruling party.

What goes on.....comes round.....even if it is Thailand.

Sorry folks.....things ain't goin' to get better for Thaksin anytime soon....ONLY WORSE.

I wouldn't be at all surprised if some time next week Thaksin finds another lame excuse to justify his continued absence from Thailand until sometime nearer the election or even after it.

I really don't think he wants to be here any longer. It's dangerous and the army for one, in the main, are extremely dissatisfied and critical of him behind his back!

He has every right to be fearful of a coup.

"Interested Foreign Observer"

[cclub75]

I fully agree with you (actually, I wrote exactly the same, in previous posts).

But I would disagree regarding the consequences.

As you said, this is a hot political potatoe. That's the trick : justice is totally secondary in Thailand (AKA not independant), politics command everything.

And the current key is : elections.

I'm still convinced that Thaksin, leading TRT (and even if he give to his lieutenant the PM chair), will win the elections.

And my personal hypothesis is : strong of his new democratic legitimacy, he will crack down on opposition.

The justice system will be totally frozen by... fear. Shin enquiry will be in an dead end.

If you peruse my differents posts regarding politics in Thailand, you'll see that my views are pessimistics due to the balance of power.

We all know that every day that passes, the only real counter power to Thaksin, is weakening.

I can't developp this idea here, for obvious reasons, but you'll get the message...

Time is the best ally to Thaksin.

Of course, we can not rule out a brutal shift in balance of powers (mass rallies again, violence, a coup whatever). Then the Shin mess could have a different end.

O.K. then cclub75 -

How come the Commerce Ministry's Business Development Department are deliberately sitting on their findings that show that Shin Corp. and Temasek acted in violation of Thai laws?

They know very well that this is an explosive issue and that Shin and Temasek are on extremely shaky ground - even if there are scores of other companies with a substantial foreign investment - through appointed nominees - in a similar situation.

The Shin sell-off is now under ever increasing scrutiny because of Thaksin and his evident unpopularity - the whole thing has become very, very political!

I doubt Temasek ever imagined the terrible scenario that they could now possibly face......DEAL VOID.....

I think this is why Thaksin is desperately clinging onto power. To protect his assets. And when Thaksin is eventually out of power this deal will be a 'lemon'.....and a future government will go vigorously after these assets realising a legal precedent. Any other companies found to have violated these laws will probably be excused and the law amended accordingly.

Edited September 17, 2006 by cclub75

[joe beets]

Investigating another 16 companies is textbook Thaksin. It like a school bully that because he can't have the toy, he'll break everyone elses so they can't play with there's eigher.

Basically Thaksin wants to make sure that if he is punished, so to are his enemies.

The other advantage is that by investigating so many other companies, he reduces the amount of staff working on the shin case and slows down the process of investigation. He also gets to dilute the news which takes some of thye heat off Shin, and most cleverly of all he makes it seem as if everyone is doing it, including many other prominent businessman and businesses, which makes him look as he isn't really doing anything that unusual or wrong.

The thing is although it may help create this image to the information deprived north easterners, to anyone who knows just how devious he has been with the sale it only solidifies their views that he is constantly trying to cover up the truth behind the sale.

I see this in my classroom all the time.

The little "angles" have absolute zero sense of personal responsibility.

Ask them who did what, and a forest of fingers appears - all pointing at someone else.

"Surely he can't punish us all."

jb

[cclub75]

Nation

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2006/09/19...ss_30013959.php

KULARB KAEW CASE

Surin: 'The investment was my cash'

Surin emerged as the major shareholder of Kularb Kaew, after buying a 68-per-cent stake in the company for Bt2.7 billion. Funds for the investment were transferred from Fairmont to his account. The identity of the ultimate shareholder of Fairmont is unknown. Surin's investment triggered questions about whether he was acting as Temasek's nominee.

[...]

Kularb Kaew holds a 51-per-cent stake in Cedar, and Cedar now holds a 51-per-cent stake in Shin Corp Plc.

Fairmont is a company... based in the British Virgin Island (a nice offshore financial place...)

Name of shareholders of a company in BVI are not public...

1-Surin should explain under what conditions he made this "investment" : 2.7 billions THB for what ? For 68 % of shares, but only 3 % of dividends like some newspapers said ? Does have real control on management ? Show us Memorandum of Association of Cedar and Shin !

2-he continues to say that he has invested his "own cash". Then he must own Fairmont. Easy for him to show the Memorandum of Association to proove that he is shareholder of Fairmont...

3-it's easy to see that this guy is a joker, full of shit.

4-How can foreign investors (real one) can react when they see such a masquarade, at high level ?

I mean it's so pathetic. Even the system they used to bypass regulation is childish (BVI, ah ah ah ah one of the top spot for money laundering and other dirty financials tricks).

It's like a big billboard : "Hello, i'm a gangster !"

[thedude]

This is an explosive story and is sure to have wide reaching ramifications on business here - particularly those businesses with foreign 'partners'.

It won't.

As I said, all the foreign companies in Thailand, that are working within or around the "forbiden or regulated activities list" use some kind of nominees. It's obvious.

Who would invest big money in a venture without controling it ? Can you imagine Temasek spending a total of 4 billions USD to buy a group and leave the control locally ?

actually, temasek's investment in shin corp constitutes probably less than 2% of its total global portfolio. in other words, the total purchase price of shin corp is probably equal to less than 6 months worth of interest and dividends temasek recieves from its investments. the shin corp buy probably means less to temasek than people think it does. and as far as i know, temasek never injects management into the hundreds of companies it invests in, only directors to sit on the boards. it would be defeating its role as an equity investor if it seeks to change the very management teams which made the company a good buy to start off with. this is like investment principle 101, which is why it totally baffles me how a simple investment got twisted with so much nationalistic hyperbole.

one point which all the conspiracy theorists failed to acknowledge is who was behind the structuring of the deal - the Siam Commercial Bank. that's right, the SCB acted as financial advisor to temasek and helped them to struture the deal. anyone wants to guess who the major shareholder of SCB is? no one would dare accuse the SCB of selling out thai national assets. this was just a straightforward acquisition that got enmeshed in the political movement to oust thaksin. this was part of crazy Sonthi's plans to outrage the hardworking tax-paying middle class. there really is nothing sinister to it, and frankly nothing done in this deal was something never done before in thailand.

[John K]

This thread is giving me a headache, all this accounting is why I hire an accountant to do my books. I know thedude is right at home here So I guess I will just play CEO here and wait for the bottom line. Now all I need do is decide where to wait.

[bulmercke]

From the letters page of today's Nation:

Full Temasek inquiry needed before country can move on

It's difficult to read about the Shin-Temasek deal without feelings of disgust and outrage arising. It has been reported that the Commerce Ministry's Business Development Department is sitting on its finding that Temasek relied on nominees to get around ownership laws in order to acquire Shin Corp ("Direct link to Temasek revealed", News, September 12).

There is no question the release of the Business Development Department's report is overdue. The department's excuse that its issuance is being stalled pending a broader inquiry into the use of nominee companies by foreign investors is not sufficient and is obviously a tactic to delay the report's release until the election is over.

This is the only reason Thaksin needs absolutely to stay prime minister and win the election - to protect his deal - because any other government or independent justice would break this deal, because it so obviously contradicts Thai law.

However, it's a catch-22 situation, and because of the enormity of the Commerce Department's "discovery", there is a chance everyone, including the opposition, would agree to amend the laws in light of the fact that all of the major foreign companies in Thailand use nominees. Thaksin would get away with it because of such fears.

A special investigator or a truly impartial committee should be appointed with a brief to examine whether civil or criminal action should be taken against any of the companies, their appointed nominees or any others involved in these transactions.

The committee's net should be cast extremely wide - it should be made clear that the inquiry means business, and no stone should be left unturned.

The Shin sale should be a test case, and its findings should serve as a legal precedent.

Whether action should be taken against Thaksin would obviously be a matter for the special investigators and the courts after examining all of the evidence. But the omens for Thaksin and his men are not good.

Thaksin has never cared much for the rules in any area, but the Shin deal showed an undeniable contempt for propriety. Everyone involved in the deal should come under scrutiny, and if the special investigative committee does its job properly, the Aegean stables will be thoroughly cleaned.

[jamie46]

HA HA HA

Let it be legal and let taksin have the money and hopefully it will help him lose his twisted face and put on a real smile for at least just a moment. hopefully and screw the rest of the people in the world.

chinese always win in the end.

[cclub75]

Wouah !

48 hours after the "institutional change"... the report of Commerce Ministry regarding Shin deal is going to be transfered to the police.

This is what I call "Post Thaksin Truely Amazing Efficiency"...

And this report concludes that Temasek used... nominees to take controle of Shin.

Joy ! Joy ! Joy !

From Bangkok Post

http://www.bangkokpost.com/Business/22Sep2006_biz50.php

The Commerce Ministry is preparing to submit to police the report of its Business Development Department, which concluded that Kularb Kaew is a nominee for Singapore's Temasek Holdings.

According to the ministry's permanent secretary, Karun Kittisataporn, the report would be submitted for police to take action against the company, which was deemed as acting as nominee for Temasek to bypass the 49% foreign shareholding limit.

Mr Karun said he would consult with the deputy permanent secretary, Yanyong Phuangrach, who was previously assigned by former deputy commerce minister Preecha Laohapongchana to conduct another investigation on the same issue _ criticised as an attempt to buy time.

Mr Karun said another investigation was not necessary as the earlier probe had been thorough.