141 Thai Industry Codes Flipped Asset Light to Asset Heavy, 2015-2025
In short
141 of Thailand's 938 comparable 5-digit industry codes crossed a hard structural line between 2015 and 2025. Each one held less in assets than a year of revenue in 2015 and now holds more in assets than a year of revenue in 2025. That is 15.03 percent of every comparable code and 29.50 percent of the 478 codes that started out revenue heavy. Combined assets across those 141 codes rose 132.84 percent while combined revenue grew only 11.26 percent. Manufacturing supplies 77 of the 141 codes, well over half the group.
How many industry codes crossed from asset light to asset heavy?
Exactly 141 of Thailand's 5-digit industry codes structurally flipped between 2015 and 2025, based on DBD registry data as of 14 August 2026 (DBD, 2026). In 2015 each of these codes earned more in combined revenue than it held in combined assets, the signature of an asset-light business. By 2025 the same 141 codes held more in combined assets than they earned in a full year of revenue. That is 15.03 percent of the 938 five digit codes with usable revenue and asset figures in both years. It is also 29.50 percent of the 478 codes that started out revenue heavy in 2015, so roughly three in ten of the codes that began the decade asset light ended it asset heavy. Combined assets across the 141 flipped codes rose 132.84 percent, from 3.89 trillion baht to 9.06 trillion baht. Combined revenue for the same codes grew only 11.26 percent, from 4.84 trillion baht to 5.39 trillion baht. Manufacturing accounts for 77 of the 141 codes, well over half the group, followed distantly by wholesale and retail trade with 19.
Where the 141 flipped codes sit, by parent section
- Manufacturing77
- Wholesale and retail trade19
- Professional, scientific and technical9
- Information and communication9
- Construction9
- Administrative and support6
- Other services4
- Transportation and storage2
- Education2
- Water and waste2
- Electricity and gas1
- Agriculture1
Figures in number of flipped codes.
Manufacturing alone holds more than half the codes that crossed from revenue heavy to asset heavy.
The twelve codes with the largest absolute asset growth
| TSIC code | Section | Revenue 2015 | Assets 2015 | Revenue 2025 | Assets 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11049 | Manufacturing | 59 | 49 | 97 | 2,162 |
| 10802 | Manufacturing | 388 | 385 | 511 | 829 |
| 47190 | Wholesale and retail | 260 | 210 | 391 | 540 |
| 26109 | Manufacturing | 418 | 338 | 532 | 574 |
| 61101 | Information and communication | 34 | 22 | 70 | 253 |
| 20131 | Manufacturing | 341 | 283 | 358 | 464 |
| 26103 | Manufacturing | 175 | 128 | 240 | 268 |
| 22299 | Manufacturing | 285 | 265 | 340 | 397 |
| 71102 | Professional, scientific and technical | 104 | 101 | 138 | 200 |
| 43210 | Construction | 153 | 128 | 177 | 195 |
| 10801 | Manufacturing | 39 | 27 | 80 | 89 |
| 70103 | Professional, scientific and technical | 49 | 31 | 43 | 86 |
Ranked by absolute asset growth in baht, 2015 to 2025. Revenue and assets shown in billions of baht.
Why this matters for how Thai companies are built
The group's own combined asset to revenue ratio flipped from 0.80 in 2015 to 1.68 in 2025, a swing of 109.27 percent. The national ratio across every comparable code moved far more gently over the same decade, from 1.42 to 1.53, a rise of 7.67 percent. Whatever pulled these 141 codes toward heavier balance sheets pulled far harder than it pulled the rest of the economy. Company counts inside the group still grew 39.55 percent, from 62,283 to 86,919 firms, so this was not a story of a shrinking pool dominated by a few large filers. One code carries an outsized share of the swing. TSIC 11049, a manufacturing code, alone contributed 40.88 percent of the group's total asset growth, its combined assets jumping from 49.1 billion baht to 2,161.8 billion baht while its own revenue rose a comparatively modest 65.47 percent. Set that single code aside and the remaining 140 codes still moved from asset light to asset heavy as a group. The traffic ran in both directions too. 64 codes moved the opposite way, from asset heavy in 2015 to revenue heavy in 2025, a smaller reverse current inside the same ten years. A rising asset to revenue ratio can mean heavier property and equipment holdings, more long lived assets carried on the balance sheet, restructuring into holding structures, or asset revaluations that never touch the income statement. The registry cannot say which cause applies to any single code, but the direction of travel for 141 codes is now on the record.
Definitions
- 5-digit TSIC code
- The most granular level of Thailand's industry classification, assigned by the DBD to each registered company, one step below the 21 lettered industry sections.
- Statement year
- The fiscal year of a company's filed financial statement, recorded in the Buddhist calendar in the source data. Statement year 2558 corresponds to 2015 and statement year 2568 corresponds to 2025 in the Gregorian calendar.
- Revenue heavy, or asset light
- A group of companies whose combined revenue for the year exceeds its combined total assets. One baht of assets on the books generates more than one baht of yearly revenue.
- Asset heavy
- A group of companies whose combined total assets exceed its combined revenue for the year. One baht of assets on the books generates less than one baht of yearly revenue.
- Structural flip
- An industry code that was revenue heavy in 2015 and asset heavy in 2025, the direction measured in this analysis.
- Combined assets or combined revenue
- The sum of total assets or revenue reported by every company under a given code that filed a statement in that year. It is an aggregate total, not a matched panel of the same companies across years.
- Asset to revenue ratio
- Combined assets divided by combined revenue for a group of companies. A ratio above 1 means the group is asset heavy, a ratio below 1 means it is revenue heavy.
Assumptions
- Revenue and asset totals for each code sum every company that filed a statement under that code in a given year, so entries and exits from the registry between 2015 and 2025 affect both years' totals.
- A code needed a positive combined revenue and a positive combined asset figure in both 2558 and 2568 to be included, which excludes codes with no filed statement in either year.
- The 2018 statement year carried an unusual registry-wide revenue spike as coverage expanded, but this analysis compares only the 2015 and 2025 endpoints, so that spike does not enter these figures.
- Public industry names are not available for 5-digit codes in this dataset, so codes are identified by their number and their parent lettered section only.
- TSIC 11049 alone accounts for 40.88 percent of the flipped group's total asset growth, so the group total is sensitive to one outlier code even though the direction holds without it.
Methodology
For every 5-digit TSIC industry code, combined revenue and combined total assets were summed across all companies that filed a financial statement under that code in statement year 2558, the Buddhist calendar year equal to 2015, and again in statement year 2568, equal to 2025, drawn from the DBD registry as of 14 August 2026. A code is included only if it reported a positive combined revenue and a positive combined asset figure in both years, leaving 938 comparable codes. A code counts as flipped if its combined revenue exceeded its combined assets in 2015 and its combined assets exceeded its combined revenue in 2025. Totals are aggregate sums for each year, not a matched panel following the same set of companies, so entries and exits from the registry between 2015 and 2025 affect both figures. Five-digit codes carry no public industry name in this dataset, so codes are identified by number and by their parent lettered section only.
How we verified this
- Counted codes with combined revenue greater than combined assets in 2015 and combined assets greater than combined revenue in 2025, among the 938 codes with positive revenue and assets in both years: 141, which is 141 divided by 938 equals 15.03 percent.
- Recomputed the conversion rate as 141 divided by 478, the count of codes that were revenue heavy in 2015, equals 29.50 percent.
- Recomputed combined asset growth for the 141 codes as 9,057,678,565,486.47 minus 3,890,041,632,070.58, divided by 3,890,041,632,070.58, equals 132.84 percent.
- Recomputed combined revenue growth for the same codes as 5,386,243,027,394.53 minus 4,840,934,412,367.78, divided by 4,840,934,412,367.78, equals 11.26 percent.
- Recomputed the group's own asset to revenue ratio as combined assets divided by combined revenue: 0.8036 in 2015 and 1.6816 in 2025, a change of 109.27 percent, against a national ratio that moved from 1.4219 to 1.5310, a change of 7.67 percent.
- Recounted the 141 codes by parent section: manufacturing 77, wholesale and retail 19, professional and technical 9, information and communication 9, construction 9, administrative and support 6, other services 4, transportation and storage 2, education 2, water and waste 2, electricity and gas 1, agriculture 1, summing to 141. Manufacturing's share is 77 divided by 141 equals 54.61 percent.
- Isolated TSIC 11049 and confirmed its asset increase of 2,112,616,455,733.17 baht is 2,112,616,455,733.17 divided by 5,167,636,933,415.89, equal to 40.88 percent of the group's total asset increase.
References
- Department of Business Development. (2026). Registered juristic persons and financial statement aggregates. Ministry of Commerce, Thailand. https://www.dbd.go.th/
- OECD. (2025). The corporate sector. In OECD Capital Market Review of Thailand 2025. OECD Publishing. https://www.oecd.org/en/publications/oecd-capital-market-review-of-thailand-2025_0a975590-en/full-report/the-corporate-sector_008c96e5.html
Frequently asked questions
How many Thai industry codes flipped from revenue heavy to asset heavy between 2015 and 2025?
141 of the 938 five digit TSIC codes with usable revenue and asset data in both years, which is 15.03 percent of that comparable set.
Which sector has the most flipped codes?
Manufacturing, with 77 of the 141 codes, well over half the group. Wholesale and retail trade follows with 19.
Did every industry code move toward asset heaviness over the decade?
No. 64 codes moved the opposite way, from asset heavy in 2015 to revenue heavy in 2025, a smaller reverse flow inside the same ten years.
Is one code skewing the total asset growth figure?
Yes, partly. TSIC 11049, a manufacturing code, contributed 40.88 percent of the group's total asset increase on its own, though the remaining 140 codes still moved from asset light to asset heavy as a group.
Cite this page
Chatpong L. (2026). 141 Thai Industry Codes Flipped Asset Light to Asset Heavy, 2015-2025. Max Data Insights. https://maxdatathailand.com/insights/thai-industry-codes-that-flipped-asset-light-to-asset-heavy-2015-2025
Data & corrections
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Written by
Chatpong L.Founder, Max Data, Max Solutions Co., Ltd.
Chatpong L. leads Max Data, a company-intelligence platform built on Thailand's official business registry. He writes about the structure of the Thai economy using primary registry data. His work covers company formation, industry concentration, and regional business activity.
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This page reports company-level and aggregate statistics only. It names no individuals and makes no claims about any person. Figures are provided for information and may be revised as source data updates.