Turning 50 years in operations in 2024, The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) unveils a three-year strategic plan (2024-2026) to create quality Thai capital market for sustainable growth (Delivering Market Quality x Growth). Under the plan, AI technology will be harnessed to toughen wrongdoing prevention, protect investors and monitor the quality of listed companies. On market competitiveness, potential businesses will be encouraged to go public, while In-bound / Out-bound roadshows are planned to attract more investors. Through LiVE Platform, SMEs / Startups will enjoy greater supports. SET will also introduce products that meet investors’ requirements and ensure the infrastructure meet international standards to deliver market participants the platform for business expansion. Supports will also go to the capital market and national sustainable development agenda, on the path towards net zero by 2050.
SET President Pakorn Peetathawatchai said that in light of challenges and current circumstances particularly in the area of supervision, SET has kicked off measures to ensure market integrity and boost confidence in the capital market. In collaboration with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and relevant agencies, the supervision of listed companies has been enhanced from their listing dates through delisting. SET will also bolster the Thai capital market’s competitiveness and attractiveness as a fund-raising and investing destination, deliver new opportunities to market participants and drive the national sustainable development agenda. As SET is celebrating entering the 50th year, it will ensure mutual benefits for all parties under the vision of "To Make the Capital Market 'Work' for Everyone".
Through the 2024-2026 strategic plan, SET sets to achieve “Delivering Market Quality x Growth” through these three key strategies: 1) Reforging Trust 2) Boosting Competitiveness and 3) Enabling Capability.
1. Reforging Trust
1.1 Strengthen Quality & Prevention Tool by developing the analyzing and monitoring tools to track the quality of listed companies and trading activities: The Financial Data Health Check and Surveillance Prevention and Analytics (SPA) systems have been in place, while data on listed companies’ bonds is linked with that of partners like the Thai Bond Market Association (ThaiBMA) for faster processing.
1.2 Protect and immunize investors through the application of AI technology in tracking disinformation on social media: Warnings will be sent out to investors via SET’s channels while the Anti-Fake News Center will be alerted to warn the general public. A warning system will be developed to alert social media companies for the removal of fake news and fake pages, so as to limit damage to the general public. The system shall be operational within the fourth quarter of 2024.
2. Boosting Competitiveness
2.1 Investment attractiveness enhancement
- Supply side: Encourage companies in promising industries to go public in collaboration with partners, particularly those in target industries which are digital, health and agri-business/food industries; adopt technology that supports both fund-raising companies and listed companies like One Report and Digital IPO System; improve LiVE Platform for SMEs / Startups’ greater accessibility, understanding and application; and attract domestic and international investors via In-bound / Out-bound roadshow.
- Demand side: Provide each investor segment with new investment alternatives (More Choice) through the development of new alternatives like Small Size Thai Share that suits new investor characteristics or Inverse ETF for risk management during a bearish condition; develop new indices; make it easier and more efficient in accessing the capital market (More Streamline), involving the convenient and fast opening of trading accounts and investment platforms that are simple and supports multiple assets; and build stock investment knowledge and understanding to investors and general public in a wide scope through various projects while provide in-depth knowledge to sharpen skills to capital market professionals.
2.2 Enhance Capital Market Infrastructure:
Improve the infrastructure in line with global standards in support of market participants’ business expansion and extend partnership in the areas of IT Service and Data Solution.
3. Enabling Capability
- Environmental: Primarily to promote listed companies’ knowledge through SET ESG Academy; improve ESG infrastructure through Climate Care Collaboration Platform and SET Carbon Scheme which is an extended version of ESG Data Platform; and collaborate with global partners to ensure SET ESG Assessment meets global standards.
- Social: Primarily to strengthen family businesses and social enterprises, by connecting more family businesses with LiVE Platform; and promote investing knowledge among multi-jobbers and freelancers.
- Governance: To reinforce knowledge and understanding in the capital market and supervision to government officers related to the justice process; and push for the laws and regulations supportive to the capital market.
Meanwhile, the SET group will emphasize the intense implementation of internal ESG. For instance, SET’s Journey Towards Net Zero will be toughened to become a Net Zero Organization, while the organization will evolve to meet the new generation’s requirements, build a culture to be more resilient and flexible to changes (Culture Transformation), and develop the efficient risk management and governance system.
Significant achievements in 2023
1) Fundraising & investment opportunities
- IPOs' issued size amounted to THB 38.26 billion (approx. USD 1.10 billion), the seventh highest in Asia, with 12 companies in the new economy.
- SET had the highest liquidity among ASEAN exchanges, the position it has been holding since 2012. The average daily trading value in 2023 was tuned at THB 53.33 billion.
- TFEX saw average 534,898 contracts traded daily.
- 11 products were issued with securities traded in Singapore, Hong Kong, Vietnam, etc. as underlying assets (total 23 foreign-linked products).
- More than 3,000 SMEs / Startups participated in LiVE Plaform and there were four LiVEx-listed companies.
- Thailand ESG Fund was established for the purposes of sustainability and tax privileges.
2) Development of entrusted capital market infrastructure
- SET CONNECT adopted new trading system supported by latest, high-efficiency and standardized technology.
- TDX inaugurated digital token trading, with RealX being the first.
- 658 listed companies linked their data with ESG Data Platform (74 percent of all listed companies).
- Five steps of supervision were uplifted.
- Listing: Added criteria on listed companies’ qualifications.
- Ongoing Obligations: Added oversight of listed companies facing weak operating performance by adding causes of C sign posting.
- Trade Surveillance: Added detection on unusual trading activities and studied an establishment of “Securities Bureau”.
- Delisting: Added grounds for delisting.
- Escalation to Public: Added information disclosure requirements for listed companies and provided information on unusual trading and program trading by SET.
3) Capital market development for social and national benefits
- 28 listed companies included in DJSI Index, the highest in ASEAN.
- Distributed the manual of standardized carbon credit contracts to listed companies and established the network of domestic and international ESG partners.
- Proclaimed the Net-zero Commitment 2050 and joined the Task Force on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures (TCFD).
- Promoted financial / investing literacy to Thai individuals and corporates through "Happy Money - Know how to overcome debts" campaign, LiVE Platform and Family Business.
- Jointly Initiated the “collaboration in the fight against investment fraud” scheme with partners, private organizations and government agencies.
- Promoted social enterprises with 51 business co-creation deals with listed companies and social enterprises.
