Atchara to quit after five years in the hot seat

Atchara Suttisirikul will leave her position as managing director of Siam City Asset Management after nearly five years at the helm.

She said the firm's operations and management would be little affected by her departure, effective August 15.

"Our assets under management are stable and the management team is in place," she said.

Atchara joined the firm when it started in 2004. It recently sold a 40-per-cent stake to the Government Pension Fund (GPF). Siam City Bank, its parent company, holds the remaining shares. By having GPF on board, Atchara said the company could benefit from the expertise in risk management and technology of the country's largest fund.

With the investment, GPF has two seats on SCI Asset's board. SCI Asset has registered capital of Bt300 million.

Unlike most asset-management companies, it took SCI Asset two years to break even instead of the usual four to five years, said Atchara. The company now has Bt31 billion in assets under management, a big leap from Bt884 million in 2004.

Amid speculation of invitations to head other asset-management companies, Atchara said she would like to spend more time with her family in Nakhon Si Thammarat.

"I have already have had such a good time and opportunities

[at SCI Asset]. There's no need

to go to other companies." Dur-ing her tenure, she saw the number of accounts rise from about 8,000 to today's 15,000 in three years. Atchara is excited about the opportunities for the industry, particularly when the Deposit Insurance Act starts to roll out. She believes there is much room for product innovation.

"The next battle will be of new products," she said, adding that the migration from bank savings would make guaranteed products popular.