Sinee និង Sunong បដិសេធការទាមទាររបស់ Chanin ជុំវិញមរតក និងការគ្រប់គ្រងរបស់ Dusit Thani
Sinee Thienprasiddhi and Sunong Salirathavibhaga issued a statement on Thursday in response to their brother, Chanin Donavanik, regarding the inheritance dispute of the Thai hospitality company Dusit Thani.
The family conflict began when Chanin, the elder brother of Sinee and Sunong, held a press conference on Wednesday. He claimed that there had been attempts by outsiders, specifically Central Group, to acquire shares in Chanut and Children, the major shareholder of Dusit Thani.
According to their statement, the management of Chanut and Children and Dusit Thani is separate from the administration of the inheritance of Thanpuying Chanut Piyaoui, the founder of both Chanut and Children and Dusit Thani.
The company was established in 2010 by Thanpuying Chanut Piyaoui, who intended for it to remain within the family. The company’s founding shareholders consisted of Thanpuying Chanut and her three children, with a company bylaw stipulating that shares should not be transferred to outsiders.
Article 6 of the company’s regulations states: "Shareholders are prohibited from transferring shares to outside individuals, except to existing shareholders or their heirs." Article 7 further clarifies that shares in Dusit Thani can only be transferred for company liquidation purposes.
The family disagreed with Chanin's statement suggesting that the changes in the board were abnormal, implying that the introduction of new members connected to Central Group would allow outsiders to take control of the family business, and that such an action would open the door for improper external control of the company. This, they argued, was not possible.
Due to the aforementioned regulations, the company cannot sell shares in Dusit Thani to individuals outside the family, and Chanin is well aware of this, the statement said.
It is unclear what Chanin’s intentions are in making this statement, or how it would benefit Dusit Thani and its shareholders. In the company's view, this statement brings no advantage to Dusit Thani or its shareholders.
Sinee and Sunong clarified that the request to convene an extraordinary shareholders' meeting of Dusit Thani was made with the best interests of both the company and its shareholders in mind.
The decision was a legal and justified one, as Dusit Thani has not paid dividends for over five years and has accumulated losses of over 1.25 billion baht. Therefore, the company could not remain passive and deemed it necessary to implement changes in Dusit Thani’s management by adding 10 new directors to improve operational efficiency.
This was done with the goal of returning Dusit Thani to profitability, which would ultimately benefit the company and its shareholders.
Importantly, Chanut and Children believes that Central Pattana holds a significant stake in Dusit Thani, amounting to 17.09%, and is a key partner in the Dusit Central Park project, which is valued at over 46 billion baht.
The company therefore deems it appropriate to invite Central Pattana to send representatives to join the board of Dusit Thani, in line with their shareholding proportion. This is a standard practice for managing investments in businesses and not an unusual request in any way.
This is intended to allow Central Pattana to contribute its knowledge and experience to support and further develop Dusit Thani, strengthening the business and ensuring its growth.
The statement further explained that Central Pattana has nominated only two new board members from the 10 additional directors, making it impossible for Central Pattana to take control or take over Dusit Thani, as reported.
Furthermore, the company is confident that Central Pattana is a well-respected, professional organisation that operates under governance principles and has no intention of taking over Dusit Thani as alleged.
Sinee and Sunong reassured Dusit Thani shareholders that the company’s actions were motivated by a genuine intention to manage Dusit Thani in a way that promotes sustainable progress, following the principles and management approach established by Thanpuying Chanut.
Sinee, having worked alongside Thanpuying Chanut for over 30 years, has absorbed invaluable knowledge and experience directly from her. Therefore, the company believes that Sinee possesses the knowledge, understanding, experience, and capability to manage Dusit Thani effectively.
Additionally, Kritsada Kaweeyan and Supasak Jiraseveenupraphan, who will join as board members with signing authority alongside Sinee, have no connections to Central Pattana.
They are highly qualified individuals, and the company believes they will manage Dusit Thani with transparency and in accordance with good governance practices, as outlined by the Stock Exchange of Thailand.
This will enable Dusit Thani to succeed, become a globally recognised hotel brand, and continue to thrive in Thailand, in line with the vision of Thanpuying Chanut, the founder of Dusit Thani.
Sinee and Sunong also refuted Chanin’s statement, saying that their invitation to outsiders with no prior involvement in Dusit Thani’s management to assume control was untrue. They considered this to be a deliberate defamation.
They also clarified that the management of Thanpuying Chanut’s inheritance is a private family matter, and it was highly inappropriate to make such matters public.
They expressed that if Thanpuying Chanut were aware of this situation, she would undoubtedly feel sorrow and regret over Chanin’s actions. They believed it was essential to clarify the truth for the public.
Regarding Chanin’s claim that the three heirs of Thanpuying Chanut had agreed to divide the inheritance, with Chanin receiving all the shares in Chanut and Children, Sinee and Sunong categorically denied this.
They stated that the heirs had not reached any agreement, and the claimed agreement had not taken place. In fact, in 2023, Chanin filed a lawsuit against Sinee and Sunong to force them to transfer all shares to him.
In 2024, the court dismissed Chanin's case, ruling that the inheritance meeting had only reached the stage of determining division methods, and no agreement had been made. Despite this, Chanin continued to claim such an agreement existed.
Sinee and Sunong dismissed Chanin's statement claiming that "all parties agreed to give me all the shares in Chanut and Children, while my siblings received shares in the other two companies, with other assets to be divided equally," stating that it is entirely false and defamatory.
They emphasized that this issue has been unresolved since 2022 due to an inability to agree on the inheritance division, not a case of changing minds later, and they have suffered damage as a result.
Therefore, Sinee and Sunong wish to clarify that the actions taken regarding Dusit Thani and the request to hold an extraordinary shareholders' meeting were made with the best interests of Dusit Thani and its shareholders in mind, not for personal gain.
The company, as a major shareholder, will not allow outsiders to take control of Dusit Thani or its management.
It is committed to managing Dusit Thani with transparency, adhering to governance principles, and is open to scrutiny from all parties to ensure the long-term stability, progress, and sustainable growth of the company, the statement concluded.
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