Not every fund management professional can say that their unique investment strategies directly contributed to exponential fund growth, brought in new clients, and helped propel the organization's impact. For Thanut Jadejunprapa, having such a profound impact happened very organically. He has always been a curious learner who loved a new challenge; when you work in investments, you have to love a challenge.
At only 24 years old, Thanut was promoted to the role of Fund Manager at Principal Asset Management. He had been working as an investment analyst but wasn't afraid to inject new ideas into strategy discussions, and as it turned out, his ideas were very effective. As the youngest fund manager in Thailand, Thanut worked hard to live up to the expectations placed on him by his colleagues and customers, and in the end, he exceeded every single one.
Thanut and his team created an FMV investment strategy that reacted well with the market and propelled the growth of many different portfolios. FMV, which stands for "Fundamental, Momentum, Valuation," is an investment strategy that invests in stocks that are fundamentally strong, have heightened momentum, and are in a window of being undervalued. While this approach sounds basic, it was a new way of thinking about investment decisions and ended up leading to 13-fold growth over 8 years for the firm.
While many industry experts are known for spending a lot of time talking, Thanut became notorious for listening. He picked up signals from the market better than anyone else, but all the while, he stayed calm, measured, and effective. It's not that he has an intuition for how stocks are going to behave, but he does have an intuition of how people are going to behave, and his ability to listen to insights around him helped set him on an accelerated career path.
He used his observational skills to build an investment strategy that focused on smart dividend management. Not available anywhere else in Thailand, Thanut's proprietary strategy set his firm apart from others and grew funds quickly. In just a few years, the 'Principal Thai Dynamic Income Fund' went from being worth 1.2 billion Thai Baht to being ranked 4th by Morningstar.
At 22, Thanut was a Research Analyst right after graduating with a degree in finance. At 24, Thanut was promoted to the role of Fund Manager because he wasn't afraid to carefully develop, test, and try new investment methods. At 31, he became a Senior Private Banker at Kasikornbank where he managed the portfolios of ultra-high-net-worth clients. By working to hit financial goals for his clients, Thanut was directly supporting the financial success of the firm he worked at. At 32, he grew into a management role, working with a team of fund managers to offer better client services and better investment returns.
It was never about competition for Thanut; his goal wasn't to outpace the person he started at the company with or hit all of these career milestones by a certain age. Instead, he focused on delivering exceptional results, listening, and staying curious. In a field with so much noise, it's important to be able to stay focused, steady and calculated, and in the end, it's these qualities that set Thanut apart more than anything else.
Thanut's story is one of quiet determination, relationship-building, and data-driven approaches. Just as he advises his clients, Thanut avoids getting emotionally invested in deals, clients, or mistakes and he's better off for it. To make the learnings he's achieved more accessible to the industry, Thanut spends time mentoring and teaching. Curiosity and drive aren't skills that can be taught, but showcasing how to think outside the box, challenge the norm, and collaborate with others is a major focus for Thanut. His fresh approaches set him apart in his own career, why shouldn't they set others apart in theirs?
