SEC Deputy Secretary-General Tipsuda Thavaramara said: "Capital market and financial technology are advancing fast, pushing securities businesses to increasingly diversify their operation and services to keep pace with the changing market landscape. Given such conditions, revisions and modifications of the Securities and Exchange Act B.E. 2535 (1992) were proposed to amend certain provisions that are inconsistent with international standards or insufficient to protect investors' interest efficiently."

The new Securities Law covers six areas as follows:

(1) Enhancing flexibility of securities business supervision: For example, repeal of the minimum requirement of paid-up registered capital of securities company, allowing the SEC Board to use discretionary power to prescribe required paid-up capital suitable for the business nature and risks instead. In addition, the SEC Board has the power to exempt certain business undertaking from being classified as securities business such as provision of services to a specific group of persons and regulatory sandbox, etc. This is to accommodate undertaking of new types of business and technology-driven services;

(2) Enhancing supervision of mutual fund management: Asset management company (AMC) shall have fiduciary duty to protect the interest of unitholders. In so doing, AMC shall lay out a policy for preventing and monitoring any act that may impose a conflict of interest, unfairness or damage to unitholders' interest. In addition, the fund voting provisions have been revised to increase efficiency in practice whereby unitholders are entitled to seek the court's order to revoke the resolution found to be in contravention of the law or governing regulations;

(3) Enhancing supervision over the SET in line with international standards: The SET shall comply with the regulatory objectives and the operating rules of securities exchange. In issuing, revising or modifying its rules and regulations, the SET must conduct a hearing session with member securities companies, investors or stakeholders and such rules and regulations must be approved by the SEC Board. In addition, the composition of the SET Board of Directors and appointment procedure have been revised whereby the SET members shall elect not more than four persons and the SEC shall appoint not more than six persons from the list proposed by juristic persons or groups of persons involved with the capital market to ensure protection of the market's best interest, and the SET manager shall be ex officio board member. The directors, except the SET manager, shall hold office for a term of three years, instead of the previous two-year term to ensure continuity of the SET operation;

(4) Enhancing competitiveness of the capital market: For example, the SET Board of Directors has the power to allow direct access for a person other than the SET's member to purchase or sell listed securities, grant additional exemption to members to trade listed securities outside the SET, and promote fair competition for undertaking depository center business through scripless system for all types of securities throughout the whole process;

(5) Establishing the Capital Market Development Fund (CMDF) as a center to promote market development: The development function shall be separated from the exchange function to increase efficiency of the SET operation.

(6) Enhancing effectiveness, clarity and transparency of the SEC's operation: For example, the SEC strategic plan shall be consistent with the National Strategy, the National Economic and Social Development

Plan as well as the objectives of securities regulation in compliance with international standards. In addition, the SEC may disclose confidential information acquired by powers and duties performed under the Securities and Exchange Act to regulators of auditors, or regulators of underlying goods or variables of derivatives contracts.

The Securities and Exchange Act (No. 6) B.E. 2562 (2019), detailed summary and related documents thereof are available at www.sec.or.th.