Insights

Bangkok, Thailand, April 2024 — The Grant Thornton International Business Report (IBR) for Q1 2024 unveils a strikingly optimistic outlook among Thailand's mid-market business leaders, juxtaposed with the looming challenges that will shape the nation's economic future. With a Business Health Index score of 13.5, Thailand outperforms its ASEAN, Asia-Pacific, and global counterparts, signaling a robust confidence that may overshadow critical issues such as demographic changes, skills shortages, and the necessity for digital advancement.

Throughout this workshop, we will delve into the life cycle of companies, examining the stages of growth, maturity, and adaptation. Our focus will extend to the current business environment, where your Company stands today, and how our evolving strategy aligns with the ever-changing market dynamics.

On 7 March 2024, the Cabinet agreed and approved the principle of OECD Pillar Two, also known as Global Minimum Tax, and tasked the Thai Revenue Department (“TRD”) with formulating the corresponding legislation.

Our CEO & Managing Partner Ian Pascoe interviews our Director of Forensic Advisory Ashish Chaturvedi on the many benefits of a whistleblowing hotline, how to set one up, how to get your team to buy in, and much more in this video.

Collective Action Against Corruption in Thailand, CAC

The worst injuries are often the ones that go undetected. In far too many cases, companies that report no fraud are simply unaware of the leakages inside their own area of operations, which tend to be significant in scope. The most recent edition of Report to the Nations: Occupational Fraud, by the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners, estimates that organisations lose 5% of revenue to fraud each year. While the median loss per case is USD 117k, the average loss is an eye-watering USD 1.78 million.

international business report

The new report comes at a particularly important moment, as the economic shock of the pandemic begins to dissipate, and Thailand prepares to eliminate its last remaining COVID-era travel restrictions. At the same time, businesses throughout the region must prepare for possible supply shortages, rising energy costs, and inflation.

Organisations must be aware of the circumstances in which they are allowed to collect data to comply with Thailand’s Personal Data Protection Act.

Despite the challenges facing the Thai economy, businesses in Thailand can succeed in 2020 by reducing overheads, conserving cash, improving efficiency of internal structures, and focusing on customer service.

This is the first article for Experience and Insights, a series of interviews and articles where I discuss best business practices and insights – particularly in matters of finance – with successful thought leaders based in Bangkok. Watewiboon Pumipue is the Founder and CEO of Talad Invoice, Thailand’s first on-line invoice factoring platform. Watewiboon is also a member of the Thai Fintech Association and has worked closely with various government and public agencies such as the Bank of Thailand, the Securities Exchange Commission, the Ministry of Digital Economy and Society on the latest developments in rules and regulations on the emerging fintech industry in Thailand. I recently met with Watewiboon to discuss his business as well as some of the challenges new Fintech companies face in Thailand.

Grant Thornton China's Asia Private Equity review looks specifically into the private equity activities across the region to see how private equity funds perform in Asia as compared to the global environment. It also aims to identify the key challenges facing the private equity funds across the region, and provides an outlook for future private equity activities in Asia and globally.

Around the world, organisations are discovering the benefits of putting people at the centre of their plans and processes. There can hardly be an industry where people matter more than government.