Market for Alternative Investment
A Thai stock-market segment operated by the Stock Exchange of Thailand to provide smaller and medium-sized companies with access to public equity funding.
Last updated August 25, 2026
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Overview
The Market for Alternative Investment, commonly identified as MAI or mai, is a Thai equity market established by the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) for small and medium-sized enterprises. It was created in 1998 under the Securities Exchange of Thailand Act after the Thai securities regulator approved the principle of a dedicated market for smaller businesses on 11 November 1998. Operations formally began on 21 June 1999, while official trading commenced later, on 17 September 2001. The market was intended to widen access to Thailand’s capital markets by offering a listing venue suited to businesses that were smaller than the companies typically found on the SET main market but that could meet prescribed standards for governance, disclosure, financial condition, and public ownership. MAI is not an independent exchange group in the same sense as a separately incorporated national exchange. The SET permits it to operate with a degree of independence under the supervision of the SET board of directors. A dedicated MAI committee establishes policies and oversees market-facing functions such as listing and public relations. Core infrastructure and control functions—including trading technology, clearing and settlement, market surveillance, supervision, and disclosure procedures—are based on the systems and operating framework of the Stock Exchange of Thailand. Like other Thai capital-market venues, MAI is regulated by the Securities and Exchange Commission of Thailand. The market’s central offering is a public listing and fundraising platform. Eligible companies can raise equity through an initial public offering and subsequently trade their shares in a regulated secondary market. Listing standards include an operating history, minimum post-offering paid-in capital, minimum shareholders’ equity, a minimum number of shareholders, public-float requirements, financial tests or an applicable market-capitalization test for certain prioritized industries, adequate working capital, and continuing disclosure and compliance obligations. These conditions are designed to balance lower entry barriers for growth companies with investor-protection requirements. MAI has also developed a market identity around growth-oriented businesses, including companies in technology and other sectors with expansion potential. In 2000 it introduced a listing category for high-growth enterprises, broadening the types of smaller companies that could seek capital-market funding. The first company to be actually listed was BROOK, and the market reached its 50th listed company with Multibax Public Company Limited in January 2007. As of 12 June 2025, the market listed 225 companies according to the cited reference material. The MAI Index provides a composite measure of price movements among common stocks traded on the market. It is capitalization-weighted and excludes securities suspended for three months or longer. The index was assigned a base value of 100 on 2 September 2002. MAI therefore serves two related roles in Thailand’s financial system: it is a branded listing venue for smaller and developing companies, and it is a regulated trading and price-discovery market connected to the broader SET infrastructure. Its positioning distinguishes it from the SET main market and from LiVEx, a venue intended for certain smaller businesses and startups with lower listing requirements, while the Thailand Futures Exchange serves Thailand’s derivatives market.
History
The Market for Alternative Investment was conceived as a dedicated Thai securities market for small and medium-sized enterprises that might not fit the scale or profile of the Stock Exchange of Thailand’s principal market. On 11 November 1998, the Office of the Securities and Exchange Commission approved in principle the SET’s proposal to establish such a venue. The market was formally created in 1998 under the Securities Exchange of Thailand Act and began operations on 21 June 1999. Its establishment reflected a broader policy objective: enabling smaller Thai businesses to obtain equity capital while encouraging them to adopt the governance, disclosure, and reporting disciplines associated with a public listing. The market’s initial development included an effort to accommodate companies with strong expansion prospects even when their current size was limited. On 10 April 2000, MAI announced a second listing category for high-growth enterprises, including potential technology businesses. Yuth Vorachattarn became the market’s first managing director in January 2000, with a mandate to develop MAI as an efficient secondary market and a modern platform aligned with international business practices. Although the market had begun operating administratively in 1999, official trading commenced on 17 September 2001. BROOK was the first company actually listed on MAI. MAI introduced its composite index in September 2002. The index uses a capitalization-weighted methodology and is intended to represent price movements across common stocks traded on the market, subject to exclusions for securities suspended for three months or more. Its base value was set at 100 using the market’s reference conditions on 2 September 2002. The index gave investors and market participants a dedicated benchmark for tracking the performance of MAI-listed shares rather than relying solely on measures associated with the SET main market. Management and institutional arrangements continued to develop during the market’s early years. Vichate Tantiwanich was appointed president effective 1 November 2004. In May 2005, the SET Board approved the official Thai naming convention M-A-I, pronounced as the three English letters, rather than treating “mai” as an ordinary word. Chanitr Charnchainarong was appointed president by the SET Board in February 2006. In January 2007, Multibax Public Company Limited became the 50th company listed on the market, marking a further stage in its expansion. MAI operates within the SET’s wider market architecture. It has its own policy and market-facing oversight arrangements, but trading, clearing and settlement, surveillance, supervision, and disclosure infrastructure are derived from SET operations. The market is subject to regulation by Thailand’s Securities and Exchange Commission. Its listing framework requires, among other conditions, an operating track record, minimum paid-in capital and shareholders’ equity, a minimum shareholder count, prescribed public-offering levels, financial or market-capitalization tests, sufficient working capital, and continuing compliance with SET and SEC requirements. The exact requirements distinguish MAI from both the SET main market and LiVE Exchange, which serves certain smaller companies and startups under a separate framework. MAI’s continuing role is to connect developing Thai businesses with public investors. As reported in the cited reference material, 225 companies were listed on the market as of 12 June 2025. The market therefore remains an established component of Thailand’s equity-market system, combining a dedicated brand for growth companies with the infrastructure, regulatory environment, and market-support functions of the broader Stock Exchange of Thailand.
- 2007
Fiftieth listed company
[1]Multibax Public Company Limited became the 50th company listed on MAI on 29 January.
- 2006
Chanitr Charnchainarong appointed president
[1]The SET Board appointed Chanitr Charnchainarong as MAI president in February.
- 2005
Official M-A-I naming convention approved
[1]The SET Board approved the official Thai naming convention M-A-I, pronounced as three separate English letters.
- 2004
Vichate Tantiwanich appointed president
[1]Vichate Tantiwanich became president effective 1 November.
- 2002
MAI Index created
[1]MAI introduced its capitalization-weighted composite index on 3 September, using a base value of 100 established from the market’s 2 September reference date.
- 2001
Official trading begins
[1]Official trading began on 17 September, with BROOK identified as the first company actually listed on MAI.
- 2000
First managing director appointed
[1]Yuth Vorachattarn was appointed the market’s first managing director on 16 January.
- 2000
High-growth enterprise category introduced
[1]MAI announced a second listing category for high-growth enterprises, expanding fundraising opportunities for relatively small companies, including technology businesses.
- 1999
Operations commence
[1]MAI officially commenced operation on 21 June, creating a dedicated SET-affiliated venue for smaller Thai enterprises.
- 1998
Establishment approved in principle
[1]Thailand’s Securities and Exchange Commission approved in principle the SET’s proposal to create a market for securities issued by small and medium-sized enterprises on 11 November.
Products and positioning
A regulated alternative equity market for Thai small and medium-sized enterprises and growth companies.
Stock-market listing venue · 1999
MAI equity-listing platform
The core MAI offering is a regulated listing venue for Thai small and medium-sized enterprises and other growth companies. It enables qualifying businesses to conduct public offerings, obtain a quoted equity market, and comply with continuing disclosure and governance obligations. The framework is intended to be appropriate for smaller issuers while retaining investor-protection requirements imposed through the SET and Thailand’s Securities and Exchange Commission.
Secondary-market trading · 2001
MAI secondary equity market
After listing, company shares trade in MAI’s regulated secondary market. Trading, clearing, settlement, surveillance, supervision, and disclosure infrastructure are integrated with or based on the operating systems of the Stock Exchange of Thailand. This gives investors a dedicated venue for buying and selling shares of MAI-listed companies.
Equity-market index · 2002
MAI Index
The MAI Index is a capitalization-weighted composite index designed to reflect price movements of common stocks traded on the market. Securities suspended for three months or longer are excluded under the stated methodology. Its base value was set at 100 on 2 September 2002, providing a dedicated benchmark for the MAI market.
Issuer category · 2000
High-growth enterprise listing category
Introduced in 2000, this category broadened MAI’s fundraising scope to include relatively small companies with strong growth potential. The initiative was particularly relevant to technology and other expansion-oriented businesses whose development prospects could exceed their current scale.
Brand decisions
2000
Creation of a high-growth enterprise listing categoryStrategyBackground
MAI sought to broaden access to public fundraising beyond conventional smaller issuers and to accommodate businesses with high growth potential.
Action taken
The market announced a second listing category, called Section 2: Hi-Growth Enterprises, including potential technology companies.
Aftermath
The change expanded the market’s stated range of eligible growth-oriented businesses, although the cited material does not quantify its financial effect.
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