Scion of Richest Thai Family Prepares for Bad Debt Bonanza
- Schwin Chiaravanont to raise $500 million for distressed fund
- Thailand is in its worst recession since the Asian crisis
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Just three months after Thailand threw a $11 billion lifeline to businesses struggling to survive the pandemic, a scion of the nation’s wealthiest business dynasty is betting the bailout won’t be enough to stanch a deluge of distressed assets.
Schwin Chiaravanont -- whose family controls the 100-year-old Charoen Pokphand Group -- is planning to raise $500 million for his flagship private-equity venture 9 Basil, which aims to use most of the new money to step up purchases of distressed assets. The fund is positioning itself to benefit from bad loans soaring from a 16-year high as Southeast Asia’s second-largest economy battles its worst recession since the Asian crisis of the late 1990s.