In brief
The Office of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) issued the Family Office Circular Letter (as defined below) to clarify its regulatory approach for family office businesses in Thailand. The Family Office Circular Letter reflects the SEC's policy objective of promoting Thailand's development as a wealth management and investment hub while maintaining appropriate investor protection standards.
Importantly, the SEC distinguishes between Single Family Offices (SFO) and Multi Family Offices (MFO) and clarifies that it will continue to apply its existing activity-based regulatory approach, focusing on the nature of the services provided rather than on whether a business describes itself as a "family office." For example, an MFO conducting private fund management activities may require a private fund management license. In addition, non-capital market-related activities (e.g., legal, tax, accounting and administrative services) remain outside the SEC's supervision and are subject to other relevant laws and regulations.
In more detail
Under SEC Circular Letter No. KorLorTor. NorJor.(Wor) 47/2569 re: Promotion and Supervision of Family Office Businesses in Thailand dated 9 September 2026 ("Family Office Circular Letter"), the SEC acknowledges the growing importance of family office businesses as a mechanism for wealth preservation and intergenerational succession planning. In the Family Office Circular Letter, the SEC specifically references developments and regulatory oversights in various regional financial business centers, including Singapore and Hong Kong, and indicates its intention to support the development of family office services in a manner consistent with international trends while remaining suitable for the Thai regulatory environment.
The key issues under the Family Office Circular Letter are summarized below.
1. Family Office models
The SEC broadly distinguishes between two family office models:
- SFO
SFO is a family office that provides services solely to members of a one family or one family group and does not offer services to the public in an ordinary course of business
- MFO
MFO is a family office that provides services to multiple families in an ordinary course of business for remuneration.
2. Activity-based regulatory approach
The SEC clarifies that the regulatory treatment of a family office will depend on the nature of the activities conducted, on an activity-by-activity basis. For example, an MFO that engages in investment advisory business (IA) or a private fund management business (PF) may be regarded as providing securities services in the ordinary course of business and may therefore be required to obtain the relevant securities business license, such as an IA license or a PF license, unless an exemption under the current SEC regulatory framework applies. For example, under SEC Notification No. KorThor. 1/2560 re: Prescribing Natures of Giving Advice to Public Not Being Regarded as Engagement in the Securities Business of Investment Advisory Service, as amended ("SEC Notification No. 1/2560"), the exemptions for IA licensing requirements are, among others, the following cases where:
- The advice is provided to no more than 15 investors during any 12-month period, provided that the person providing such advice does not hold themselves out to the general public as an investment advisor
- The advice is provided exclusively to the institutional investors as defined in the SEC Notification No. 1/2560.
As an SFO provides services only to one family or a group of family members and does not provide its services to the public in its ordinary course business, the SEC views that an SFO would generally not be subject to IA and PF licensing requirements. However, the regulatory treatment of any particular activity will ultimately depend on the specific activities carried out by the SFO. If such SFO engages in any activities other than IA or PF, whether a securities business license is required must be assessed on a case-by-case basis.
3. Activities that fall outside the SEC's supervision
The SEC further clarifies that activities which are not related to capital markets generally fall outside its regulatory remit. These may include, among others, legal, tax, accounting, administrative and family governance services. However, such activities may remain subject to other applicable laws and regulations.
Looking ahead
Given Thailand's broader ambition to develop as a regional wealth management and financial hub, the Family Office Circular Letter may represent an initial step toward a more developed regulatory framework for family office businesses in Thailand. Market participants should therefore closely monitor future legal and regulatory developments, particularly as further regulations or guidelines may be issued with respect to further the development of family office businesses in Thailand.
For more details, please contact our team at Baker McKenzie.
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Yanisa Nilkhet, Associate, has contributed to this legal update.