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Thailand’s first equity exchange-traded fund (ETF), ThaiDEX SET50 ETF, will commence trading on The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) on September 6, 2007, using “TDEX” as its trading symbol, and is expected to be yet another attractive product for retail and institutional investors.
“Equity ETFs act as both investment alternatives and risk management tools. TDEX is supported by SET50 index securities with high market capitalization and liquidity. It suits investors who do not want to be directly exposed to the risks associated with an individual stock, and who seek easier management of their assets. In the future we expect an increasing number and diversity of equity ETFs to list on the Thai market,” SET President Ms. Patareeya Benjapolchai said.
TDEX is worth THB 5,000 million (approx. USD 145.35 million). It is comprised of 880.28 million investment units, with a par value of THB 5.68 each. The fund’s policy is to invest an average of at least 65% of its net asset value (NAV) in each accounting period in equities. The remainder will be invested in debt instruments, money market instruments, cash deposits, or derivatives to replicate the return of the benchmark Index, which is the SET50 Index.
One Asset Management Ltd. (ONEAM), TDEX’s management company, offered investment units to the general public during August 21-28, 2007, and to participating dealers (PD’s) during August 21-29, 2007. As of September 29, there were a total of 778 unit holders, holding 178 million units worth THB 1,011 million.
TDEX has a policy to pay dividends to unit holders from accumulated profit or net profit no more than four times per year, at not more than 100% of accumulated profit or net profit, whichever the management company deems appropriate.
Equity ETFs can be traded using any brokerage firm at a minimum brokerage fee of 0.10% of trading value. TDEX’s price is subject to a 30% ceiling and floor price derived from the previous day’s closing price and can be sold short.
The fund was established by ONEAM. Its participating dealers are Bualuang Securities Co., Ltd.; Citicorp Securities (Thailand) Co., Ltd.; KGI Securities (Thailand) PCL, Kim Eng Securities (Thailand) PCL and Thanachart Securities PCL. KGI Securities (Thailand) PCL will also be its market-maker. Samsung Investment Trust Management Co., Ltd. is its advisor and Thailand Securities Depository Co., Ltd. will act as its registrar.
Real-time information on TDEX and its price movement will be available on Money Channel (TrueVisions 80). Details are also available on www.one-asset.com and www.set.or.th.
