Government Seizes Over 20 Billion Baht in Crackdown on Nominees and Shell Companies
Thailand's government has seized over 20 billion baht in assets and identified roughly 2,100 nominee companies as part of an expanded crackdown on money laundering, shell firms, and fraudulent identity card operations announced on September
On September 18, 2025, Ekkaphop Piyanat, spokesman for the Prime Minister's Office, announced that the government is intensifying efforts to combat nominee arrangements, money laundering schemes, and fraudulent identity card operations under the Prime Minister's directive. The government is integrating data across agencies to track financial transactions, individuals, companies, shareholders, and land ownership in order to trace networks and assets connected to those involved.
The spokesman said the government is enforcing strict compliance through direct action and rapid enforcement of laws, particularly targeting nominee land ownership, illegal business operations, and the use of Thailand as a base for criminal activity. The government remains open to legitimate foreign investment and business operations conducted in accordance with Thai law.
Ekkaphop stated that proactive enforcement is producing concrete results. Financial transaction tracking has helped identify money laundering and shell accounts, while the Commerce Ministry has verified shareholders and reviewed financial histories. This has reduced suspicious nominee company registrations by approximately 70 percent. Authorities have identified approximately 2,100 companies engaged in nominee activity and more than 10,000 companies requiring further investigation, with information forwarded to relevant agencies for legal action.
Regarding land ownership, the Interior Ministry has identified companies with evidence of nominee land holdings valued at over 80 billion baht and is pursuing forced asset sales. Authorities have also uncovered networks involved in fraudulent identity card schemes across multiple regions.
In the recent "Operation Close Shadow 2" in Surat Thani Province, courts issued arrest warrants for 33 individuals involved in illegally producing national identification documents, with 27 arrested so far.
Financial tracking of networks linked to the scheme resulted in seizure and asset freezing totaling approximately 20.392 billion baht, reflecting the government's expanded enforcement from individuals to criminal networks and their financial holdings.
Ekkaphop said the results—reduced nominee company registrations, land ownership investigations, identity fraud crackdowns, and asset seizures—demonstrate the government's commitment to addressing long-standing hidden problems with rapid results. The government will continue integrating data and pursuing cases through all channels: financial flows, shareholder structures, involved individuals, and assets, pursuing legal action against violators.
The government also requested that political parties and office holders cooperate with authorities and submit individuals under investigation for nominee or money laundering schemes to the justice system without protection or interference, ensuring law enforcement is based on evidence and applied consistently to all.
