Authorities target alleged Ben Smith cross-border money-laundering network over concealed VGI, BCP and MFC holdings, with over 26bn baht in assets frozen

Thailand’s Anti-Money Laundering Office (AMLO) said on October 27, 2026 that assets worth 26 billion baht had been seized or frozen in an investigation into an alleged cross-border money-laundering network linked to Ben Smith.

The Central Investigation Bureau (CIB), the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and AMLO jointly outlined allegations that proceeds from investment fraud and cybercrime had passed through bank accounts and overseas funds before returning to Thailand to buy listed shares.

SEC secretary-general Prof Dr Pornanong Budsaratragoon said the listed companies whose shares were affected were not implicated in the alleged wrongdoing. The restrictions apply to holdings linked to the suspects, while the companies’ operations and normal market trading can continue.

AMLO asset cases await Civil Court consideration

AMLO deputy secretary-general Kamonsit Wongbutnoi said proceedings concerning the network’s assets had been divided into two cases, both under consideration by the Civil Court. The asset proceedings are separate from the criminal cases against the suspects.

Kamonsit said AMLO had issued five seizure and freezing orders since early 2024, covering property, bank deposits and securities worth a combined 26 billion baht. Listed shares accounted for 16 billion baht, including holdings in:

• Bangchak Corporation Public Company Limited (BCP).
• VGI Public Company Limited (VGI).
• MFC Asset Management Public Company Limited (MFC).

Kamonsit said AMLO could pursue measures to protect victims’ rights alongside the criminal proceedings without waiting for a final criminal judgment. Information about victims and supporting evidence must be assembled for the court to consider potential compensation, particularly because the investigation involves several groups and transactions across national borders.

An unnamed SEC source quoted by Bangkok Biz News separately estimated the network’s investments in the three companies as follows:

• BCP: More than 10 billion baht, calculated using share prices at the beginning of the year. The holdings were frozen in early 2026.
• VGI: About 8 billion baht.
• MFC: Between 3 billion and 4 billion baht.

The SEC source’s investment estimates were presented separately from AMLO’s 16-billion-baht valuation of frozen listed shares. The supplied figures do not establish a common valuation date or basis for a direct comparison.

Police trace alleged proceeds through Cambodia and Singapore

Pol Maj Gen Tatpoom Jaruprach, commander of the Economic Crime Suppression Division, said investigators had traced suspected criminal proceeds through accounts linked to the suspects and banks in Cambodia, with Thailand used as a transit point before money moved into Singapore-based funds and returned to buy Thai listed shares.

Pol Maj Gen Tatpoom said the investigation began with allegations that foreign investors had been deceived into investing in Thailand. Investigators subsequently examined two suspected sources of criminal proceeds: fraud against foreign businesspeople and technology-related crime, including call-centre scams.

Police divided the alleged network into four groups according to their roles:

1. Planners and managers responsible for investment funds.

2. People responsible for securing funding.

3. People holding assets or opening accounts on behalf of others.

4. Capital-market coordinators responsible for selecting shares and arranging investments on the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET).

Police searched four locations and seized six documentary items, including fund records, loan agreements and shareholding documents. Investigators said the material helped establish connections between money movements and ownership structures.

The investigation led to arrest warrants for six suspects and charges against a seventh person. The seven were identified, with surnames withheld in the disclosed list, as:

1. Ben
2. Cattaliya
3. Suparat
4. Yim
5. Eugene
6. Kaiping
7. Natthakorn

Police said the six suspects subject to arrest warrants remained abroad. Natthakorn, a former company director, appeared before investigators and denied the allegations.

Police said the case included alleged securities-law violations, membership of a secret society under the Criminal Code and conspiracy to launder money under anti-money-laundering legislation.

SEC alleges linked investors crossed VGI’s 25% threshold

Pornanong said the SEC’s findings indicated that three investor groups had acted together to acquire more than 25% of VGI’s voting rights without reporting their combined holdings or making the required offer to buy all the company’s securities.

The SEC investigation examined 5.9 billion newly issued VGI shares, worth 8.85 billion baht, allocated through a private placement to three investor groups:

• CAI Optimum Fund VCC for the purpose of EDH Investments: 2.9 billion
• Opus-Chartered Issuances S.A.: 2.2 billion
• Thai IR Ltd: 800 million

Pornanong said the SEC’s examination of ultimate beneficial ownership linked Yim to the CAI investment, Cattaliya to the Opus investment and Suparat to Thai IR. The regulator alleged that the investors were connected rather than independent, with Ben planning and directing the arrangements behind them.

The SEC said the relationships and conduct fell within the definition of “acting in concert” under Capital Market Supervisory Board Notification No. TorChor. 7/2552. The regulator therefore assessed the investors’ voting rights together when examining their disclosure and takeover obligations.

The SEC alleged that the investors had failed to report their acquisitions as persons acting in concert, submitted inaccurate or false information and failed to make a mandatory tender offer. The alleged conduct concerns Sections 246 and 247 of the Securities and Exchange Act 1992, with penalties under Section 298; officials also cited Section 281/10 of the same Act.

The allegations against the investors remain subject to legal proceedings and examination of the facts and evidence.

SEC says VGI can use placement proceeds as scrutiny widens

Pornanong said VGI could continue using the proceeds from its private placement for normal business purposes. Receiving money from the share offering did not automatically make the company responsible for alleged offences committed by investors.

“The freeze applies only to those suspected of wrongdoing and is unrelated to the performance of the listed companies,” Pornanong said.

Pornanong said the restrictions did not extend to all shares in BCP, VGI or MFC. Other shareholders could continue trading normally, and VGI’s shares remained available for normal trading on the SET.

The SEC said cooperation with police and AMLO combined domestic investigative findings, financial records and information from overseas regulators to identify beneficial owners behind multiple layers of funds and corporate entities.

Pornanong said enforcement involving complex overseas investment structures was part of efforts to strengthen confidence in Thailand’s capital market. The SEC was also working with market intermediaries to improve know-your-customer and customer due-diligence checks, particularly where ownership structures were difficult to trace.

“The SEC will continue examining the roles of other people involved and enforce the law strictly against everyone concerned, working closely with domestic law-enforcement agencies and overseas regulators to prevent offenders from using cross-border structures to evade scrutiny,” Pornanong said.