Securities Regulator Bans Investment Adviser for 10 Years Over Client Fraud

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has revoked the investment adviser approval of Walailak Pokperm Dee, a former Krung Thai Bank employee, for 10 years on July 14, 2025, following an investigation into her misconduct between January 2022 and March 2025. The SEC found that Pokperm Dee misappropriated assets from 11 clients totaling 19,316,457 baht through two methods: failing to invest client money as instructed and using it for personal purposes, and withdrawing client deposits without authorization by using deposit slips that prevented the fraud from appearing in account books.

Pokperm Dee also created and altered documents with false information to deceive clients into believing they had made legitimate investments and received returns while their accounts remained intact. After the bank discovered the misconduct, Pokperm Dee confessed and the bank fully reimbursed all affected customers.

The SEC determined that Pokperm Dee's actions violated regulations prohibiting dishonest conduct and behavior that undermines trust in capital market professionals. Since her investment adviser approval had already expired on December 31, 2024, the SEC imposed a 10-year ban on her reapplication for any capital market profession license, effective July 14, 2025. The SEC considered multiple factors in determining the penalty, including her role in the misconduct, previous disciplinary actions, harm to victims, and any past behavior indicating unsuitability for capital market work.

The SEC advised investors to regularly review their investment unit reports and bank statements, immediately reject or dispute any unauthorized transactions, and avoid leaving important documents with investment advisers to prevent potential fraud.