FIDF halves 2013 principal-repayment target to Bt5 billion
The Financial Institutions Devel-opment Fund (FIDF), the rescue arm of the Bank of Thailand, has revised downward the amount of the outstanding principal of its debt that it plans to repay this year from Bt10 billion to Bt5 billion.
The revision is due to the FIDF’s need to buy new shares in Krung Thai Bank.
Povongtip Poramapojn, senior director of the Bank of Thailand’s fund operation department, said that so far, the FIDF has paid off principal worth Bt5.56 billion on total debt of Bt1.13 trillion as of December last year.
That debt breaks down into FIDF1 debt (Bt463.27 billion) and FIDF3 debt (Bt669.46 billion).
The Cabinet last year approved FIDF’s transfer of money to an account reserved for the principal repayment. This year, the FIDF plans to transfer Bt5 billion to that account, for use in paying down the principal this fiscal year.
“We believed that we can pay principal on the debt to meet our new target of Bt5 billion. If we can find more money, we may add to the transfer this fiscal year,” Povongtip said.
She added that the FIDF now has cash flow of more than Bt30 billion, enough to adhere to its business plan, which calls for the principal on its debt to be paid off in full in 24 years from now.
