Thailand

In this round, up, cross-border RMB trade settlement falls further in Hong Kong, the RMB qualified foreign institutional investor (RQFII) scheme adds the first Thai asset manager, and the Hong Kong Exchange confirms the final list of stocks available through Shenzhen Connect from December 5. Plus, a recap of our weekly coverage.

The Laos government sold a five tranche baht-denominated bond in Thailand’s domestic market last week, netting Bt11bn ($309.7m) in proceeds. In its sixth deal in the Thai market, the sovereign targeted high net worth investors to tap into a new liquidity pool.

Kasikorn Asset Management broke new ground last month when it became the first Thai entity to attain a renminbi qualified institutional investor (RQFII) licence. In an exclusive interview with GlobalRMB the CIO of KAsset, Navin Intharasombat, said this is more than just a symbolic move as it is also the first opportunity for Thai-domiciled funds to invest in China directly.

Teflon Thailand proved its resilience again this week, as stocks rebounded and Banpu Power priced its Bt13.6bn ($394m) listing on the same day news broke about the passing of the country’s beloved king.

In this round-up, the Shanghai Free Trade Zone introduces electronic warrants to facilitate cross-border payments for commodity companies, Macau gets high level backing for its renminbi ambitions and new RQFII quotas for Thailand and Luxembourg. Plus, a recap of our coverage this week.

Thailand-based Kasikornbank’s Hong Kong branch and Malaysia’s RHB Bank navigated a crowded Asia bond market to bag a combined $900m.

Banpu Power, the energy arm of Thailand’s largest coal mining group, has hit the road for a Bt13.6bn ($394m) listing.

Thailand has ambitious plans to plug its infrastructure gap but before these investments can take off, funding must take centre stage. Project bonds are one way to overcome this. Asiamoney speaks to a group of leading market participants about how the Kingdom’s domestic liquidity can be harnessed to fund infrastructure developments, and why project bonds make sense for both issuers and investors.

Thailand’s CP Foods Holdings has raised $300m from an exchangeable bond, returning to the equity-linked market after a hiatus of nearly three years.

The southeast Asian businesses of Standard Chartered have come into focus recently, with the bank naming new CEOs for its Thailand and Philippine offices.

The solar unit of Thai oil refiner Bangchak Petroleum is looking to raise up to Bt5.9bn ($170.7m) from its IPO, announcing the price range on Tuesday.

Standard Chartered has made a pair of top-level appointments in southeast Asia, naming the first local CEOs for its Thailand and Philippines offices.