Has anyone opened up an investment account for a Thai?

[Hal65]

Or helped them along in that direction?

I have a Vanguard account and understand investments from the perspective of an American (ie I buy my local index funds and am covered by their global diversity).

I want to teach a Thai person how to put some savings into index funds but am not sure if the setup is different for them -- or if it's exactly the same.

If anyone else has been through this I'd appreciate your feedback, thanks.

[fletchsmile]

If you open one for them in Thailand, it's generally easier for Thais to open one than foreigners. Likely more convenient too, and they can talk in Thai to the provider if any questions. The downside is a more limited range of funds in Thailand, and a bit higher fees. The industry has moved on a lot in the last decade or so, and there's a reasonable basic range available covering the fundamental asset classes and main markets, eg international equities, local equities, bonds, property/ REITs, gold

If you're talking outside Thailand, it's obviously going to be more difficult for a Thai and depends where you go. My wife and I have joint investment accounts in Singapore through which we buy mutual funds/ETFs/investment trusts/shares etc.

Given the limited knowledge of the person buying and Thai nationality, I'd suggest going locally first.

StanChart have about the widest range. TMB have more of a focus on passive managed/ index funds. Each of the banks also markets the funds of their related companies, eg BBL, bualuang. You can go direct to the likes of fund managment houses like Aberdeen or UOB, but their focus is more on active managed funds

Cheers

Fletch

Edited January 26, 2016 by fletchsmile