Sarath Ratanavadi remains wealthiest shareholder in Thai market for fifth year

For the fifth year running, Gulf Energy Development Plc‘s Chief Executive, Sarath Ratanavadi, tops the list as the wealthiest shareholder in the Thai capital market. Despite a 12.9% dip from the previous year, his shares were valued at a whopping 190 billion baht, according to a recent survey.

The annual assessment, a joint effort between Money & Banking magazine and the faculty of commerce and accountancy at Chulalongkorn University, ranks the top ten richest shareholders in Thailand. The ranking is based on the market value of their listed company shares as of September 30 this year.

The Thai Stock Exchange has not fared well this year, ranking as one of Asia’s poorest performers with a year-to-date decline of 17.6%. This downturn has impacted the wealth of seven of the top ten people on the list, resulting in a decrease in their share of wealth from the previous year.

Sarath’s shares in SET-listed Gulf were valued at 190.8 billion baht, a decrease of 28.15 billion baht from the previous year. Despite this drop, Sarath managed to retain the top spot for five consecutive years with his shares consistently valued at over 100 billion baht.

Sarath also features on this year’s Forbes magazine list of Thailand’s 50 wealthiest people, ranking fifth with a net worth estimated at US$10.3 billion (366 billion baht).

Niti Osathanugrah of the beverage and consumer products group Osotsapa Plc secured the second spot on the list with stocks worth 61.79 billion baht, marking an increase of 3.66 billion, or 6.3% from 2022.

The third richest shareholder was Dr Prasert Prasarttong-Osoth with stocks valued at 57 billion baht, down by 5.73 billion baht, or 9.1%. His wealth is primarily derived from his holdings in Bangkok Dusit Medical Services Plc (BDMS), which operates the Bangkok Hospital chain, and Bangkok Airways.

PSG Corporation Plc’s largest shareholder, Panicha Dau, took the fourth spot with shareholdings valued at 41.6 billion baht, a significant decrease of 40 billion baht, or 49%.

Poramaporn Prasarttong-Osoth, the chief executive of BDMS and daughter of Dr Prasert, rounded out the top five with shareholdings worth 26.63 billion baht, down by 8.36 billion baht, or 23.9%, reported Bangkok Post.