Charoen Sirivadhanabhakdi

Charoen Sirivadhanabhakdi
Born	(1944-05-02) May 2, 1944 Thailand
Occupation(s)	Entrepreneur, investor
Known for	Founder of Thai Beverage; chairman of TCC Group and Fraser and Neave, Ltd

Charoen Sirivadhanabhakdi (; born 2 May 1944) is a prominent Thai entrepreneur and investor.

He established Thai Beverage and holds the position of chairman at the conglomerates TCC Group and Fraser and Neave, Ltd (F&N). The Sirivadhanabhakdi family ranks as Thailand's foremost property developer, possessing extensive land and commercial real estate in Singapore. His holdings encompass 50 hotels across Asia, the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia, including notable properties like Plaza Athénée in New York City and The Okura Prestige Bangkok. According to Forbes in 2020, his estimated net worth was US$10.5 billion.

In 1988, King Bhumibol bestowed upon the family the Thai surname "Sirivadhanabhakdi".

Early life

Charoen was born in 1944 into a Thai Chinese household as the sixth child among eleven siblings. His family originated from humble beginnings, with his father working as a street vendor after migrating from Shantou to Bangkok. His Chinese name is Su Xuming (). The family later adopted the Thai surname Srisomburananont. Charoen discontinued formal education at age nine to enter the workforce and is fluent in both the Teochew dialect and Thai.

Business career

Charoen’s initial venture involved supplying distilleries producing Thai whiskey, which was then under state monopoly control. Utilizing his network, he secured a licence to manufacture alcoholic beverages, capturing 15% of the market share.

In 1985, when licences for the remaining 85% of the market became available for bidding, Charoen obtained a US$200 million loan backed by alcohol inventory and successfully acquired all concessions. By 1987, his beverage enterprises paid US$550 million in royalties to Thailand’s excise department, accounting for five percent of the national budget.

Beer

In 1991, Charoen formed a partnership with Danish brewer Carlsberg to enter Thailand’s beer industry, which was then dominated by Boon Rawd Brewery's Singha beer. Drawing on knowledge gained from Carlsberg, he launched his own beer brand, "Chang", by 1994. Within five years, it had captured 60% of the domestic market. Carlsberg exited the joint venture in 2003. Subsequently, Charoen prevailed in a US$120 million lawsuit against Carlsberg in 2005.

Plans to list ThaiBev on the Thai stock exchange in 2005 were suspended following objections from Buddhist groups concerned about alcohol consumption.

Property

From the early 2000s onward, Charoen diversified into real estate development through TCC Land Co. Ltd., now among Thailand’s largest developers. This entity invests across residential, hospitality, retail sectors as well as property management, logistics, agribusiness, and property funds within Thailand and Singapore. As of June 2014, the Sirivadhanabhakdi family held approximately 630,000 rai of land—making them Thailand’s largest private landowners by a significant margin—owning over three times more land than the second largest holder and roughly twenty-one times more than the royal Crown Property Bureau. Overseas real estate assets are managed by TCC Land International across regions including the US, UK, Australia, Japan, China, and Southeast Asia.

In early 2013, Charoen completed the acquisition of Singapore-based Fraser and Neave, Ltd., which controls extensive property portfolios across Asia along with soft-drink businesses. Valued at US$11.2 billion, this transaction was Asia’s largest merger and acquisition deal that year and was primarily financed through bank loans from institutions such as United Overseas Bank and DBS Bank. By February 2013, Charoen’s entities (TCC Assets and Thai Beverage) owned about 83% of F&N shares.

In April 2017, Charoen unveiled One Bangkok—a US$3.5 billion project situated on a 104-rai plot at Rama IV Road and Wireless Road—representing Thailand’s largest private sector property development. This collaboration between TCC Assets and Frasers Property will create a 1.83 million square meter mixed-use complex featuring office spaces, retail outlets, residences, hotels, and public areas incorporating an arts program. Completion is projected for 2025.

Sport

Towards the end of 2015, there were indications that Charoen was nearing the acquisition of Everton F.C., an English Premier League team that has been sponsored by Chang Beer since 2004.

Retail

On 7 February 2016, TCC Group revealed plans to purchase a majority stake of 58.6% in Thailand’s hypermarket chain Big C Supercenter from France’s Groupe Casino for €3.1 billion. Big C ranks as the country’s second-largest hypermarket operator, following Tesco’s Thai division, and holds a market value of 163.25 billion baht (approximately US$4.6 billion). This deal substantially broadened Charoen’s retail presence in Thailand, aligning with his control over Berli Jucker PCL, the publicly traded retail subsidiary of TCC.

Personal life

Charoen is married to Khunying Wanna and they have five children. His son, Thapana Sirivadhanabhakdi, occupies the position of CEO at ThaiBev, while his daughter Wallapa Traisorat serves as CEO and President of Asset World Corporation. The youngest son, Panote Sirivadhanabhakdi, is a member of the executive board at F&N. Another daughter, Thapanee Techajareonvikul, holds an executive director role at Berli Jucker Company, where her husband Aswin Techajareonvikul acts as CEO and President. Charoen follows the Buddhist faith.

Honours and awards

Royal decorations from Thailand include:

• Knight Grand Cordon (Special Class) of the Most Exalted Order of the White Elephant
• Knight Grand Cordon (First Class) of the Most Noble Order of the Crown of Thailand
• Knight Commander (Second Class Lower Grade) of the Most Illustrious Order of Chula Chom Klao
• Knight Grand Cross (First Class) of the Most Admirable Order of the Direkgunabhorn

He has received honorary doctorates from:

• Maejo University
• Huachiew Chalermprakiet University
• Eastern Asia University
• Mae Fah Luang University
• Chandrakasem Rajabhat University

Foreign honours

• Awarded Honorary Commander of the Order of Loyalty to the Crown of Malaysia (P.S.M.) in 2017, granting him the title Tan Sri and his wife Puan Sri.

Associations with former Thai prime minister

Prem Tinsulanonda, who previously served as a military general and prime minister in Thailand, was a board member of ThaiBev during the early 2000s and played a pivotal role in rescuing Charoen's Surathip Group—the distributor of Chang beer—in 1986. At that period, Surathip faced substantial debts owed to banks and government entities until Tinsulanonda intervened by restructuring agreements that established a near-monopoly in the liquor market and reclassified Chang as an "economy brand," which resulted in lower excise taxes.

Safeguarding business interests

Following the 1997 Asian financial crisis and initiatives to reform Thailand's competition policies in 1999, Charoen utilized his political ties to reinforce his leadership within the alcoholic beverage sector.

He is said to have opposed efforts to open up the local whisky market during the late 1990s and early 2000s, leveraging influence gained from assisting politically connected firms burdened with debt after the crisis. This included acquiring Pantip Plaza, a Bangkok IT shopping center, from Chalermchai Vaseenont—a former director general at the Ministry of Finance responsible for regulating the liquor industry.

Support from political connections provided bureaucratic benefits: after market liberalization, strict environmental rules for new distilleries created barriers for rivals; however, Charoen circumvented these challenges by obtaining all twelve government-issued distillery licenses.

His assistance during financial turmoil also seemingly protected him from negative media coverage; for instance, a military-run radio station reportedly terminated a program that criticized Charoen and included accusations related to tax evasion.

Rivals have contested some of these practices. In 2000, Boon Rawd Brewery, maker of Singha beer, filed a complaint with Thailand's Fair Trade Department alleging that Charoen engaged in dumping low-priced products to restrict competition. Although he received warnings for improper conduct, he was ultimately exonerated due to incomplete regulations governing such matters. It was reported that the commerce minister abstained from participating in deliberations, with details about the decision remaining confidential.