Social, Political Change Could Weaken Case against Thai Bankers.

Aug. 2--Outstanding criminal and civil charges against dozens of former bankers and financiers could see the state's case weakened due to changes in the social and political atmosphere and within the government itself.

Over the past three years, the Bank of Thailand has pressed numerous legal charges against senior bank executives for actions leading to damages and losses for their financial institutions.

But the recent decision by the British High Court in one of the more prominent cases, that against Pin Chakkaphak, former president of defunct Finance One, raises questions about whether other cases could be dismissed as well.

One of the most powerful arguments in the Pin case was that transactions between Finance One and two subsidiaries were not only normal banking practices, but also were done with the implicit approval of the central bank.

The same defence has been cited by numerous other financiers who have faced accusations by the central bank, whether with Laem Thong Bank, General Finance or Krung Thai Bank.

Many of the cases do not deal with outright fraud for personal gain, but rather the charge that lending was made without proper analysis or judgement.

But the Pin decision, coupled with the recent revelation that police had recommended against continuing a criminal fraud case against Som Jatusripitak, former president of Siam City Bank, suggests that changes in the political and social environment could result in all of these cases being dismissed.