BANGKOK (AFP) – Thailand’s Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra declared more than USD400 million in assets on Friday, her party said, including more than 200 designer handbags worth over USD2 million and at least 75 luxury watches valued at almost USD5 million.
Paetongtarn, the youngest daughter of telecom billionaire and ex-prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, took office in September as the fourth member of the clan to lead a Thai government in 20 years.
Paetongtarn was obliged to declare her assets and liabilities to the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC).
She identified THB13.8 billion (USD400 million) in assets, a document posted on media websites showed.
Her investments were worth THB11 billion and she had another billion baht in deposits and cash, her declaration said.
Her other assets included 75 watches valued at THB162 million and 39 more timepieces, plus 217 handbags worth THB76 million, as well as property in London and Japan among other holdings.
She also declared liabilities of nearly THB5 billion, according to the NACC document posted by local media, giving her a net worth of THB8.9 billion (USD258 million).
A representative from the Pheu Thai Party confirmed to AFP that the figures reported by Thai media were accurate.
Her father and predecessor Thaksin — who once owned Manchester City football club — has a net worth of USD2.1 billion, according to Forbes, making him the 10th-richest person in Thailand.
Thaksin used the wealth generated by his Shin Corp telecommunications empire to propel him into politics, and his family has remained influential even during his years in exile following his ousting in a coup.
Analysts say there is a longstanding connection between wealth and power in the kingdom.
“In a nation without a fully functioning democracy, money plays a crucial role in political activities,” Yuttaporn Issarachai of Sukhothai Thammathirat University told AFP.
“This has often been the justification for military interventions, with claims of a lack of transparency.”
Paetongtarn’s immediate predecessor as premier, Srettha Thavisin, declared assets of THB985 million when he was dismissed by Thailand’s constitutional court in August — down from THB1.02 billion at the start of his term.
