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Published on November 29, 2007

After leaving the banking industry five years ago, Praphaisith Tankeyura, 54, a banker-turned-land developer, still feels the pulse of the credit industry as if he never left it.

"All my good friends are still there [in the banking industry], and we're in touch. As a land developer, I still need banks - both pre- and post-financing," says Praphaisith, who is managing director of The Boathouse, Bt5-billion luxury residential project in the Cha-am-Hua Hin area.

Having been in the banking industry for two decades, he knows what banks want - and what they don't want.

"I know what their risks are and how much they can accept. I just turn myself back to being a banker when I think for them," he says.

The 75-rai Boathouse project, with three-storey villas and a condominium, was partly financed by BankThai, from which Praphaisith bought the beautiful tract of land north of Hua Hin town. Post-financing was done by Kasikornbank, Bank of Ayudhya and Siam Commercial Bank.

It has never been a secret that his success at The Boathouse, which has enjoyed combined sales of Bt2 billion since it was established in mid-2005, has been partly due to his experience in the banking industry.

He worked with Tisco and Citibank before being appointed as Bank of Ayudhya's president in early 1998, when Thailand's banks were suffering in "intensive care", with massive bad-debt burdens arising from the 1997 financial crisis.

The difficulties of overseeing a staff of 12,000 when the bank's bad loans were up to more than 30 per cent of the total are still fresh in Praphaisith's memories.

"I'm certainly more comfortable as a land developer now than I was heading the bank in the wake of that crisis. It was not easy bringing NPLs [non-performing loans] down from 33 per cent to 5 per cent. Now I'm dealing with a small, good team of only 10 members," he says.

Yet the crisis taught him well and made him realise how the Dhamma of Buddhism can bring about wisdom with suffering all around. Other lessons, he says, are that patience is sorely needed when it comes to teamwork, and everything can change - a matter of natural fact.

"I learned to let things go. When it turned dark everywhere and there was a need to raise capital several times over, while partners were hard to find, I did my best. When things did not go as I wished, I had to reconcile my mind [to the facts that] this is the real world, we do our best and live for the present. I told myself don't worry much about future and don't be too possessive," he says.

However, comparing being a banker with being a land developer, Praphaisith finds that both are scientific disciplines to which the same principles must be applied.

"Although the work isn't very much alike, the principles are the same. You need to decide; to analyse the facts and reasons, look for demand and supply, find all the best information and then do the risk management," he explains.

Praphaisith did not find it too difficult to transform himself into a land developer several years ago. He learned all about the property market while at Citibank, which has it own portfolio of investments, including in the property sector.

Despite the luxurious style of the residences he has developed, Praphaisith considers himself conservative.

With a project as big as The Boathouse, the feasibility study had to be followed by risk management. One advantage was The Boathouse bought its land from BankThai after the bank had foreclosed on its mortgage. The price was merely Bt3 million per rai, whereas its present value is about Bt50 million per rai.

The location is one of the prime areas in Hua Hin district - a favourite place for retirees and a romantic hideaway for couples.

With a sales target of Bt2 billion to Bt2.4 billion between 2005 and the end of this year, Praphaisith believes sales can be boosted another Bt1.2 billion to Bt1.5 billion next year.

He believes such success could never have been achieved without his team. Therefore, building the team was crucial.

"Doing anything like this, you need to create team spirit. We persuaded highly educated and capable people to work with us. They had to be easy to work with and patient enough to listen to others. Then we explained our mutual benefits. Then we went in the same direction," Praphaisith says.

In choosing staff, he researched educational backgrounds, track records and family histories. And when it came to compensation, Praphaisith says money was not enough.

"When we want to keep capable people, we certainly don't pay less than market rates. But a person needs not only money; he or she needs acceptance from us. With the potential they have, we need to give them the opportunity to express their opinions. This is called consideration. We settle on the truth and solve any problems from there," he says.

Praphaisith had all the best ingredients: good project potential, good strategies, risk management and a good team. But something beyond his control delivered a nightmarish incident.

He had a roadshow planned for Hong Kong in October 2006. Only days beforehand, too late for anything to be cancelled, Thailand's September 19 military coup brought tanks rumbling onto the streets of Bangkok. Although Praphaisith went ahead with the roadshow, nobody wanted to buy his luxury residences.

It was the kind of situation where only those businessmen with deep pockets and an inner calm are able to survive.

No matter how professional you may be, no one can be a winner all the time, Praphaisith concludes.

 Jiwamol Kanoksilp

 The Nation