Aira & Aiful Plc, the newly incorporated retail lender, will be among the non-bank institutions set to jump on the nanofinance bandwagon.
Aira is planning to apply for a licence by next month, said Aira Capital (AIRA)'s chief executive Nalinee Ngamsettamas.
The retail lender is a joint venture between MAI-listed Aira and Japanese consumer lender Aiful Corporation.
Applications for the nanofinance scheme opened on Monday and no deadline has been set by the Bank of Thailand.
Operators with registered capital of at least 50 million baht will be eligible to become "nano" financial institutions under central bank criteria, with their debt-to-equity ratio not exceeding seven times their registered capital. If operators' ratios exceed the stipulated threshold, they have to reach the specified ratio by Jan 23, 2016.
Commercial banks and registered institutions can operate the nanofinance scheme immediately without seeking permission from the finance minister, but non-bank lenders have to gain the minister's approval following their application.
Interest rates for nanofinance will be capped at 3% per month, or 36% a year, with the principal not exceeding 100,000 baht in each case.
The central bank recently said 14 non-bank financial institutions had expressed interest in being lenders for the nanofinance scheme.
The nanofinancing scheme is one of the government's priorities to tackle loans sharks and give low-income earners access to formal financial sources. A central bank study in 2013 found that about 600,000 households in Thailand borrowed from the informal sector, while 1.3 million families had no access to the formal loan system.
Separately, Mrs Nalinee said Aiful Corporation had bought 80 million shares, representing a 2% stake in Aira, from the Thai company's major shareholder at a price of 3.96 baht each, to the tune of 317 million baht.
AIRA shares closed yesterday on the MAI at 3.74 baht, up 20 satang, in heavy trading worth 1 billion baht.