Nearly half of Thailand's 50 Richest as estimated by Forbes saw their wealth decline in this year's listing, casting uncertainty on the country's near-term economic future.
The combined net worth of those listed fell marginally to US$160.5 billion (5.11 trillion baht) from last year's total of $162.5 billion. This was due largely to political uncertainty after the general election, which dampened economic sentiment, weakened the baht and sent the stock index down 7% year-on-year.
The Chearavanont brothers of Charoen Pokphand Group held on to the top spot again with $29.5 billion, but their wealth decreased slightly from $30 billion last year.
Taking the second spot was Central Group's Chirathivat family with $21 billion, edging down from $21.2 billion last year.
Red Bull owner Chalerm Yoovidhya remained in the No.3 spot with $19.9 billion, down from $21 billion last year.
Charoen Sirivadhanabhakdi, the owner of Thai Beverage, ranked fourth with a fortune of $16.2 billion, down from $17.4 billion in 2018.
Wealth did grow for about one-third of those on the list, with energy tycoon Sarath Ratanavadi seeing the largest gain as his fortune grew from $1.8 billion to $5.2 billion. He moved into the top five as revenue from Gulf Energy Development grew.
Another notable gainer, the Osathanugrah family (eighth place, $3 billion), saw net worth rise from $2.3 billion last year after the October 2018 listing of energy drink brand Osotspa. Run by Petch Osathanugrah, an avid art collector and former pop singer, Osotspa began as small pharmacy selling herbal medicines, founded by Mr Petch's great-grandparents.
There were four newcomers on this year's list: Betagro Group chairman Chaivat Taepaisitphongse (23rd, $1.8 billion); King Power CEO Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha (sixth, $4.7 billion), the youngest on the list at age 33; Bangkok Bank president Chartsiri Sophonpanich (29th, $1.1 billion); and the Maleenont family (47th, $600 million), owners of media company BEC World.
The minimum amount of wealth to make the list dropped to $565 million, down from $600 million last year.
The list was compiled using shareholding and financial information obtained from the families and individuals, stock exchanges, analysts, the Stock Exchange of Thailand and regulatory agencies.
The list encompasses family fortunes, including those shared among extended families of multiple generations. Public fortunes were calculated based on stock prices and exchange rates as of April 26.
Private companies were valued based on comparisons with similar companies that are publicly traded.