Thai king assumes control of US$30bn crown assets

Assets previously registered to Thailand's Crown Property Bureau will now be held "in the name of His Majesty," the bureau said on its official website on Saturday, the latest shake-up in royal affairs under King Maha Vajiralongkorn.

The Crown Property Bureau said its assets will now be "subject to the same duties and taxation as would assets belonging to any other citizen."

Previously, assets registered in the name of the Crown Property Bureau were exempted from tax.

"The removal of exempted status was accomplished in line with His Majesty's wishes," the statement said.

The exact size of the Crown Property Bureau is not made public, but Forbes magazine valued the bureau's holdings in real estate and other investments at more than 30 billion US dollars in 2012.

King Vajiralongkorn, 65, who became monarch after the death of his father, King Bhumibol Adulyadej, in 2016, has overseen a number of changes to the way royal affairs are managed since taking the throne.

A royal property law was amended in July last year to formally give the king full control of the Crown Property Bureau, which manages the multi-billion dollar holdings of the monarchy and controls huge swathes of land in Bangkok.

(REUTERS)