Thai business formations increase despite lower registered capital
New business registrations reached 7,979 in June and 44,773 in the first half, while registered capital declined in both periods.
- In the first half of 2026, new business registrations in Thailand increased by 2.13% to 44,773, while their total registered capital fell by 25.44%.
- The decline in registered capital suggests entrepreneurs are launching businesses more cautiously, using less initial funding or delaying large investments.
- Growth was particularly strong in internet retail, clothing retail, and restaurant businesses, which all saw significant increases in new registrations compared to the previous year.
- Despite the rise in new formations, business dissolutions also increased by 12.49%, with the capital of these closing firms rising by 224%, indicating significant pressure on existing companies.
Poonpong Naiyanapakorn, director-general of the Department of Business Development at the Ministry of Commerce, said 7,979 new businesses were registered in June 2026, an increase of 956, or 13.61%.
Registered capital stood at THB15.231 billion, down by THB2.882 billion, or 15.91%.
For the first half of 2026, covering the six months from January to June, 44,773 new businesses were registered, an increase of 935, or 2.13%.
Registered capital totalled THB111.201 billion, down by THB37.939 billion, or 25.44%.
Among new business registrations, three business categories recorded notable growth compared with the same period last year:
- Internet retail businesses: 1,296 registrations, up by 470, or 56.90%, with registered capital of THB2.123 billion.
- Restaurant/eatery businesses: 2,119 registrations, up by 287, or 15.67%, with registered capital of THB3.446 billion.
- Clothing retail businesses: 499 registrations, up by 227, or 83.46%, with registered capital of THB696 million.
Business dissolution registrations in June totalled 1,760, an increase of 292, or 19.89%.
The registered capital of the dissolved businesses stood at THB6.807 billion, down by THB3.596 billion, or 34.57%.
For the first half of 2026, from January to June, dissolution registrations totalled 7,024, an increase of 780, or 12.49%.
Cumulative registered capital of dissolved businesses stood at THB98.857 billion, up by THB68.313 billion, or 224%.
As of Tuesday (June 30, 2026), a total of 2,094,850 legal entities had been registered, with a combined registered capital of THB32.39 trillion.
Of these, 1,004,558 were operating, with a combined registered capital of THB23.81 trillion.
They comprised 802,717 limited companies, accounting for 79.91% of all operating legal entities, with registered capital totalling THB17.81 trillion.
Limited partnerships and registered ordinary partnerships numbered 200,327, or 19.94%, with registered capital of THB430 billion.
Public limited companies totalled 1,514, or 0.15%, with registered capital of THB5.57 trillion.
The service sector accounted for the largest share of registered legal entities, with 547,518 and registered capital of THB13.94 trillion.
It was followed by the wholesale/retail sector, with 328,850 entities and THB2.63 trillion in registered capital, and the manufacturing sector, with 128,190 entities and THB7.24 trillion.
These represented 54.50%, 32.74% and 12.76%, respectively, of all operating legal entities.
Poonpong said cumulative legal-entity registration statistics for January to June showed that ‘the number of newly established legal entities’ had risen, while registered capital had declined and pressure on existing businesses had increased.
New registrations rose by 935, or 2.13%, while capital-increase filings increased by 109, or 1.02%, showing that entrepreneurs were still entering the system and some existing businesses continued to expand.
However, in value terms, registered capital for newly established businesses fell by 25.44%, while the value of capital increases declined by 2.26%.
This suggested that business start-ups and expansion may be taking place more cautiously, with entrepreneurs possibly using less initial capital or delaying large investments compared with the previous year.
At the same time, capital-reduction filings increased by 155, or 14.19%, although the value of capital reductions fell by 30.19%.
This showed that more businesses were restructuring their capital, but the overall scale of reductions was lower than in the previous year.
It may reflect broader business adjustment, particularly among small and medium-sized businesses needing to manage costs or adjust their financial position.
A point to watch was that dissolution registrations rose by 780, or 12.49%, while the registered capital of legal entities that dissolved increased by as much as 223.66%.
This suggested not only that more businesses had closed, but also that there may have been an increase in closures among legal entities with relatively high capital.
This was a sign of business pressure, such as high costs, a slowdown in purchasing power, intense competition or the impact of economic conditions.
