AMC – Tools for solving NPLs
Asset Management Company (AMC) does business through purchasing or auctioning NPLs (non-performance loans) from commercial banks or financial institutions and manages such NPLs through restructuring of NPLs. The AMC business is governed by the Bank of Thailand (BOT), where the selective NPLs from the banks will be sold to the AMCs through auction. The banks will notify the debtors and creditors before and after the auctions of debt. AMCs that win such auctions have the duty to inform the debtors of their rights to claim the debt in place of the banks. Still, the original right to claim the capital, interest, and other relatives’ rights and obligations agreed with the banks are still enforceable. The debtors just have to perform their obligations with the AMCs.
Under this current situation, a joint venture agreement between AMCs and commercial banks is to be entered into giving the banks more flexibility in managing bad debts and also helping AMC in playing a key role in the country’s bad asset management as some have capital limitations in terms of buying distressed debt.
According to the published news in May 2022, All Inspire Development Plc. is one of the companies operating AMC businesses. The company aims to buy the NPLs for about 500-1000 million baht with an estimated return of around 4 – 4.5 billion baht.
Based on Bangkok Commercial Asset Management or BAM’s forecast, the value of NPLs from the banks will be around 200-300 billion baht, and other financial institutions will be around 9 billion baht.
Under the BOT rules and regulations, a limited company or public limited company with a registered capital not less than 25 million baht and having a purpose of business to be transferred of NPLs from the banks or financial institutions to manage the NPLs are able to apply for operating of AMCs business with the BOT. The AMC that did not comply with the regulations and rules set by the BOT will result in revocation of registration.
The joint venture entities will be operated for not more than 15 years from the date of approval for their operation, and after that, those will need to be liquidated or changed of shares proportion held to be in accordance with the relevant laws and regulations governed their business.
The booming of AMC business is the gravely additional tool or assistance for the banks to manage the NPLs during this downhill of economic due to the pandemic. However, this AMC tool is not a long-term resolution in which the government is needed to launch and implement the economic policy to solve this problem on a long-term basis.
Author: Panisa Suwanmatajarn – Managing Partner, The Legal Co., Ltd.