Thailand unscathed by Western banking turmoil

Following the bankruptcy of Silicon Valley Bank and emergency merger of Credit Suisse, many people have concerns about the volatility in capital and currency markets.

Most economists from the public and private sectors expect the ongoing US and European banking crisis to have a limited effect on the Thai banking sector thanks to the solid fundamentals of local banks and the strong supervision of the Bank of Thailand.

Finance Minister Arkhom Termpittayapaisith last Wednesday insisted Thai financial institutions will not be affected by the banking debacle in the US and Europe as local organisations have little exposure to such banks.