Finance Minister Arkhom Termpittayapaisith says if any illegal activities are found in the probe of Stark Corporation shares, responsible agencies must prosecute the offenders.
He urged the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) to improve the regulatory system for timely detection of abnormalities.
Mr Arkhom recently directed the SEC and SET to expedite the investigation of Stark shares.
The two organisations are expected to jointly report on the progress of this probe early next week.
Regarding the supervision of listed companies, he requested the SEC and SET work together to improve the regulatory system for timely detection of fraud.
The SEC and SET plan to assist retail investors by using class action laws to protect their equity interests, said Mr Arkhom.
"The regulators must take immediate legal action against those involved in preparing the company's faulty financial statements to restore investor confidence," he said.
"The SET recommends investors trade Stark's securities with caution and carefully study the company's financial statements, the auditor's disclaimer of opinion on its financial statements, the summary of special audit results and any other information related to Stark," said the SET's statement.
Stark, a wire and cable manufacturer, was recently valued at 31 billion baht. Its shares were suspended from trade from July 1 because of its failure to submit financial statements for 2022 by the deadline, in conjunction with the resignation of seven board directors and changes of the chief financial officer and auditor.
The SEC was later informed that Stark's auditor, PricewaterhouseCoopers Abas Ltd, detected a transaction that may be unusual, according to the SET statement.
The listing of STARK shares followed an unconventional path, known as a reverse takeover or backdoor listing through Team A Holding 2 Co Ltd (TAH2), which acquired Phelps Dodge International (Thailand) or PDITL, a US wire and cable manufacturer. Later, Stark (formerly known as Siam Intermedia Plc) entered into an entire business transfer agreement regarding the TAH2 transfer of its shares in PDITL, and changed its name to Stark Corporation.
