Key points
- More than 230 hotels and resorts across Thailand have been given a critical financial reprieve after the Bank of Thailand (BOT) extended the deadline for businesses to repurchase assets under its Asset Warehousing or Asset and Debt Moratorium programme until December 31, 2027.
- The Asset Warehousing programme was introduced by the Bank of Thailand in 2021 during the height of the pandemic as an emergency debt relief initiative.
- It enabled struggling businesses to transfer ownership of collateral assets, including hotels, resorts and commercial properties, to financial institutions to settle outstanding debts while retaining the right to repurchase those assets within five years.
Thailand Hotel News: More than 230 hotels and resorts across Thailand have been given a critical financial reprieve after the Bank of Thailand (BOT) extended the deadline for businesses to repurchase assets under its Asset Warehousing or Asset and Debt Moratorium programme until December 31, 2027. The decision comes as hundreds of smaller hospitality operators continue battling the lingering financial effects of the COVID-19 pandemic despite the country’s steady tourism recovery.
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The extension covers more than 400 businesses participating in the programme, with tourism-related enterprises accounting for over 57 percent of the total. This Thailand Hotel News report highlights that an estimated 230 to 232 hotels and resorts form the largest group of businesses benefiting from the additional time. For many of these operators, the extension could determine whether they successfully regain ownership of their properties or permanently lose them to lending institutions.
Hotels Dominate Asset Warehousing Programme
The Asset Warehousing programme was introduced by the Bank of Thailand in 2021 during the height of the pandemic as an emergency debt relief initiative. It enabled struggling businesses to transfer ownership of collateral assets, including hotels, resorts and commercial properties, to financial institutions to settle outstanding debts while retaining the right to repurchase those assets within five years.
As original buyback deadlines began approaching in mid-2026, concern grew that many businesses would be unable to raise sufficient funds to reclaim their properties. In response, the BOT approved an extension allowing eligible participants to repurchase their assets until December 31, 2027.
Official data indicates that tourism-related businesses account for more than 57 percent of all programme participants, meaning that approximately 230 hotels and resorts remain under the scheme. Most of these establishments are independently owned hotels, boutique resorts and small hospitality businesses rather than large international hotel groups.
Small Hotels Continue to Face Financial Pressure
While Thailand’s tourism industry has shown encouraging signs of recovery, the rebound has not been evenly distributed across the accommodation sector. Industry sources say large hotels in key tourist destinations have largely restored their liquidity thanks to stronger occupancy rates, international visitor growth and improved revenues.
Smaller hotels and resorts, however, continue facing considerable financial challenges. Many remain burdened by reduced cash reserves, rising operating costs, labor shortages and limited access to new financing, preventing them from buying back properties previously transferred to banks.
Most businesses participating in the programme are small and medium-sized enterprises with asset values below 100 million baht. During the pandemic, many transferred hotel buildings and land to financial institutions to prevent loan defaults while preserving the opportunity to reclaim ownership when trading conditions improved.
Banks Prefer Businesses to Recover
Financial institutions have little interest in permanently owning or operating hotels and resorts. Their primary objective remains recovering outstanding loans rather than managing hospitality businesses.
Banking industry sources say lenders are therefore supportive of extending repayment periods and restructuring debt where appropriate to improve the chances of borrowers successfully repurchasing their assets before the revised deadline.
The underlying principle of the programme remains unchanged: wherever possible, businesses should retain the opportunity to recover financially and eventually regain ownership of their hotels or resorts.
Bank of Thailand Explains Extension
Bank of Thailand Governor Witai Rattanagorn said both the central bank and the government have continued supporting financial institutions through existing assistance programmes designed to improve businesses’ access to funding.
These include the SMEs Secure+ financing programme and soft loan facilities provided through the Government Savings Bank.
According to the governor, many businesses remain affected by slower economic conditions, global uncertainty and geopolitical tensions, including continuing conflict in the Middle East. Although many operators fully intend to repurchase their assets, they require additional time to restore financial stability and secure financing.
Businesses seeking to extend their agreements have been advised to contact their financial institutions before their existing contracts expire. Companies with sufficient liquidity remain free to repurchase their assets according to the original timetable.
SME Lending Continues to Decline
The extension also reflects broader concerns surrounding Thailand’s SME sector.
Dr. Kanjana Chokpaisalsilp, Research Executive at Kasikorn Research Center, said overall SME business conditions remain fragile. The research center forecasts SME lending will contract by approximately 4.5 percent during 2026 after recording a five percent decline last year.
The accommodation and food service sector continues to experience particularly weak lending conditions. As of May 2026, SME lending to hotels, accommodation providers and food service businesses remained in double-digit negative territory, declining 10.1 percent year-on-year.
These figures demonstrate that many hospitality operators continue experiencing restricted access to finance despite improving tourism numbers.
Lifeline for More Than 230 Hotels and Resorts
For Thailand’s hospitality industry, the BOT’s decision represents a significant opportunity for approximately 230 hotels and resorts still attempting to recover from the financial damage caused by the pandemic. Rather than facing the loss of their properties as buyback deadlines approach, operators now have additional time to restructure debt, improve cash flow and secure new financing.
The extension also benefits financial institutions by increasing the likelihood of loan recovery without requiring banks to assume ownership and management of hotel properties.
The additional time until the end of 2027 does not eliminate the financial pressures confronting Thailand’s smaller hotel operators, but it provides a realistic pathway toward recovery. If tourism demand continues strengthening and lenders maintain flexible restructuring support, many of the estimated 230 hotels and resorts participating in the programme could eventually reclaim ownership of their properties and restore long-term business stability. The extension represents both an important safeguard for the hospitality sector and a practical solution for preserving viable tourism businesses across the country.
References:
https://www.bot.or.th/th/news-and-media/news/news-20260717.html
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