At A Glance

In recognition of his sharp vision, true professionalism, social responsibility, impeccable financial and banking qualifications, and successful transformation of the first Thai bank towards sustainability amid a changing financial landscape, Arthid Nanthawithaya, president and chief executive officer of Siam Commercial Bank, has been named Financier of the Year 2017 in a unanimous decision by Money & Banking Magazine's award committee.
Arthid's distinction is clearly reflected in his transformation project designed to help SCB cope with rapid changes in technology, particularly Financial Technology (FinTech). FinTech is transforming financial landscapes and creating new ecosystems, such as the government policy calling for a cashless society and client lifestyles that are rapidly moving to digital platforms. He thus spearheads the bank's vision of becoming the most admired bank in Thailand, maintaining momentum and ensuring fairness for all stakeholders.
 Arthid is totally devoted to transforming the bank through the SCB Transformation Project, which involves adjusting strategies and business operations by focusing on core foundations relating to human resources and work processes. 
The project aims to prepare staff to embrace technology and boost their workplace satisfaction. Importantly, another project goal aims to instil pride in the bank among SCB staff, as the bank believes that having happy employees leads to success.
SCB has invested over Bt40 billion to support all these changes, the bank's largest such investment ever, creating an advanced and highly efficient technology infrastructure to quickly support smart functions and capabilities in the digital banking age, such as smart phone applications, big data analytics, and blockchain.

SEC extends PACE deadline 

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has agreed to Pace Development Corporation Plc’s (PACE) request for postponing the submission of its clarification regarding the assumptions used in the fair value measurement of its investment in Pace Project One Co Ltd (Pace One) and Pace Project Three Co Ltd (Pace Three). The deadline is extended to 15 January 2018. 
Earlier, the SEC instructed PACE to clarify the reasons of the assumptions used in the fair value measurement and to disclose the assumptions, its review of the reasonableness of the assumptions, and the sensitivity analysis on significant factors. The information had to be publicly disclosed through the SET’s Electronic Information System within 30 November 2017. 
However, PACE failed to meet the original deadline because the company would like to seek further opinions from another financial adviser to supplement the clarification of the reasonable assumptions and the review on the fair value of the investment. PACE thus requested a deadline extension to January 15, 2018 to have more time to proceed as planned. 
If the results of the review affect the fair valuation of the investment or any items in the financial statements that were submitted to the SEC Office and disclosed publicly, PACE said that it will rectify and re-submit such financial statements to the SEC on the same day. 
The SEC has granted PACE the request for deadline postponement. However, the clarification, and the rectified financial statements, if applicable, must be submitted to the SEC and disclosed through the SET Electronic Information System within the extended deadline on 15 January 2018. 

Big discounts on offer in year-end sales 

IKEA, the home furnishings retailer from Sweden, is offering over 627 popular items for home lovers at super special prices, including the Klippan double-seated sofa for Bt9,900, the Valje shelf for only Bt2,790, the Fillsta lamp for only Bt1,290, and the Morik wireless charger for only Bt690. 
Early-bird shopping is available exclusively to IKEA family members who can take advantage of more discounts from December 20-21. Regular customers can get some great savings from December 22 to January 7 of next year.
 In addition, IKEA is offering extra special deals with a 10 per cent discount on delivery service, kitchen and bathroom assembly service, furniture assembly, and sewing services (Pick-up service is excluded).

‘A’ rating for BTS issue 

TRIS Rating has affirmed the company rating of BTS Group Holdings PLC (BTS) at “A”, while assigning the rating of “A” to BTS’s proposed issue of up to Bt7 billion in senior unsecured debentures. 
The proceeds from the new debentures will be used to repay existing debts and/or investment and/or finance its working capital.
The ratings reflect the company’s strong business profile based on the high predictability of the service income from the mass transit train operation, stable dividend income received from a 33.33 per cent ownership stake in BTS Rail Mass Transit Growth Infrastructure Fund (BTSGIF), and its entrenched position in media business. However, BTS’s financial profile will be weighed down by a surge in debt over the next four years as the company plans to invest a number of large mass transit projects.