Over 7,000 suspected nominee businesses found on Samui and Phangan islands
DBD has identified over 7,000 suspected nominee businesses on Koh Samui and Koh Phangan, mostly in real estate, tourism and hospitality sectors.
Poonpong Naiyanapakorn, director-general of the Department of Business Development (DBD), revealed that authorities are stepping up efforts to investigate and take legal action against companies using Thai nominees to conceal foreign ownership.
He said the department has been monitoring such cases nationwide, not just in Surat Thani, following increasing reports of foreigners acquiring land and running businesses in popular tourist destinations such as Koh Samui and Koh Phangan.
In Surat Thani province alone, preliminary inspections found that both islands have seen an influx of foreign investors — mainly from Europe and other regions — operating a wide range of enterprises, from large and medium-sized ventures to small businesses using Thai nationals as proxy shareholders.
“Preliminary investigations show that more than 7,000 businesses on Koh Samui and Koh Phangan are at risk of being nominee companies,” Poonpong said. “Most are engaged in real estate, such as condominiums, as well as tourism, hotel, and restaurant businesses.”
To enhance scrutiny, the DBD has revised its inspection framework to focus on businesses where foreigners hold between 0.001% and 49.99% of shares across six high-risk sectors, involving 46,918 entities. The department is now applying deeper criteria beyond shareholder ratios to identify genuine risk indicators.
After the new screening, only about a thousand businesses will be prioritised for immediate investigation, he added. Once those are reviewed, the probe will extend to entities with lower risk levels.
The DBD has also established a special committee to prevent and suppress illegal businesses, with mandates to vet high-risk registrations, ensure legal compliance, and strengthen enforcement.
Following recent changes in government, the authority of the previous committee overseeing foreign businesses and nominee cases has expired. To maintain continuity, the Commerce Ministry has proposed that Prime Minister and Interior Minister Anutin Charnvirakul appoint a new panel chaired by a deputy prime minister.
The proposal also includes expanding membership to four key agencies — the Department of Special Investigation (DSI), the Anti-Money Laundering Office (AMLO), the Board of Investment (BOI), and the Industrial Estate Authority of Thailand (IEAT) — to improve coordination and enforcement capacity.
