It will have no impact on business operations, the bank said.

The bank's market capitalisation is Bt443.53 million, based on the market price of its shares at Bt3.30.

Chairman Kai Nargolwala said that since the bank had no plan to raise capital via the stock market, which could increase the stakes of minority shareholders, the board decided to be proactive by delisting itself.

"After delisting, Standard Chartered Bank (Thai) will still operate under the supervision of the Bank of Thailand, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Commerce and the Securities and Exchange Commission," he said.

"The bank will continue to be managed to the highest standards and decisions will continue to be made based on what is in the best interests of shareholders as a whole. Our customers will continue to benefit from our being a locally incorporated commercial bank with international strengths," he said.

UK-based Standard Chartered Bank holds 99.83 per cent of the Thai unit, leaving only 0.17 per cent for small shareholders.

The exchange requires a listed company to maintain a free-float - the ratio of shares owned by minority shareholders to total shares available for trading in the stock market - of at least 15 per cent. With a lower level, a company must increase its capital.

Among the companies whose free-float is below 15 per cent is Shin Corp, with Aspen Holdings and Cedar Holdings having a combined 97 per cent. Shin Corp has so far said it wants to maintain its listing status, but the capital increase plan has not yet been disclosed, presumably due to legal complications surrounding the status of Kularb Kaew, which is a major shareholder of Cedar Holdings.

Kularb Kaew is under investigation for possibly acting as a nominee for a foreign firm.

Standard Chartered Bank (Thai) was renamed from Standard Chartered Nakornthon Bank. The original Nakornthon Bank was taken over by the UK-based bank after the 1997 financial crisis, which caught several banking empires in liquidity traps.