New technology for assets auctions

The Legal Execution Department plans to auction seized assets worth up to Bt60 billion this year using the same technologies as banks, offering a real-time broadcast of bidding via the Internet.

Announcing the plans after a ministerial regulation amendment on methods and conditions for asset-auctioning, department chief Wisit Wisitsoraat said the agency sold assets worth Bt8.8 billion in the past six months, triple the usual rate of Bt2.9 billion per year.

An amended regulation will require bidders to place a deposit at 30 per cent of the asset's worth, up from the current rate of 10 per cent. The measure would prevent bidders from taking advantage of legal loopholes to stall auctions and prevent high-value assets from being sold, Wisit said.

The Nation