Vayupak Fund II ready in 3-4 months
The Finance Ministry is expected to complete the groundwork for setting up its Vayupak Fund II in the next three or four months, as the Vayupak Fund I will liquidate next year, Areepong Bhoocha-oom, permanent secretary for Finance, said.
The new fund would be an open-ended mutual fund that can be traded in the market, Areepong explained, unlike the Vayupak Fund I, which is closed-ended with a 10-year maturity and designed to provide alternative investment options at a period when commercial banks offer really low deposit rates.
The new Vayupak Fund will be worth about Bt300 billion, up from the Bt200-billion value of the current fund, he explained.
The ministry is considering how investments in the current fund can be transferred to the new one, Areepong said.
"It will take about three or four months to come up with a solution," he said.
While the current fund invests in key state enterprises, such as Thai Airways International, PTT and banking stocks, the new fund would diversify into other areas such as government infrastructure projects.
The ministry is also considering whether it should guarantee investment returns at 3 per cent per annum like the Vayupak Fund I, he said.
The ministry might also assign three or more fund managers to operate the fund, depending on the scope of investment. MFC Asset Management and Krung Thai Asset Management manage the Vayupak Fund 1.
