INTERVIEW with Mr. Carlo Sorio, The Managing Director of Asian Pay

The Managing Director of Asian Pay, Mr. Carlo Sorio has kindly agreed to an exclusive interview with Talk Thailand. Asian Pay has been around a number of years now and has become a leader in the e-currency and exchange business. They also operate a Low Yield Investment Program called "The Investors Corner" which has become quite popular

Recently Asian Pay announced the "Go Public Project", so in this interview we have decided not to ask the standard questions like can you tell me a little about Asian Pay (as this has been covered before in numerous interviews with Carlo) and focus specifically on the future of Asian Pay

Thank you very much for giving me the opportunity to better explain and clarify our Business and our Vision. I only want to apologize in advance for my not perfect English writing. I'm Italian and speaking for many years more Thai Language than English or my own Italian language itself. I hope that my answers will be anyway clear and understandable.

Talk Thailand: Can you please tell us a little more about the "Go Public Project"

To move our Company to a Public Company is a great Challenge but we can not project a bright future without this step.
To be a Public Company in Thailand makes a big difference in the kind of development we can give to our Business. Money Circulation is strictly regulated in this Country like in many others, and any further development of our Online Payment Business, especially the ones needed to stay in the market and to follow the very important changes that are expected in the Payment Industry in the next few years.
Old style Payment Processors had to face in the last 15 months tremendous issues from Government Regulatory Authorities, many of them have been limited or closed down.

To move to a Public Company will allow us, specifically, to obtain:

A - The e-card licence from the Ministry of Finance to open to our Business unlimited opportunities in the Money Circulation including Storing Value Business that at the present time are not allowed to us ( this is why we do not allow simple deposits by
Credit card to an Asianpay Account - We do not have permission to do that unless the deposit is directly provided to cover a payment to a third party).

B - The possibility to open retail shops and to combine our Business with Online and Offline facilities so to be able to cover any of the many possible Customers' needs.
We are looking to implement in our Business a "Western Union Style" service to be developed in Asian Countries allowing AsianPay members to deposit locally overseas and then to transfer money to their families or relatives living in Asian Countries allowing the receiver to go to collect cash to one of our retail shops.

C - Many other future Business development that are strictly connected to the Company position with Government Agencies not only in Thailand but also due to many bilateral agreement Thailand has with neighbour Countries.

The reason why we have launched this project combining it to The Investors Corner itself opens a discussion on what The Investors Corner represents for us. It will be probably explained in my other answers but I would like to underline that the main reason is that we believe our Company should not be a BIG BOYS' STYLE Company (PayPal, Ebay or others similar) but a WORLD TEAM STYLE COMPANY. Just think, one moment only, if in its early days PayPal was offering the same kind of opportunities we have offered to normal people. That's my personal dream. To finally get a real team of hundreds of people around the world committed to the same business and receiving real benefits from it. Something that anyone says is very easy to build over the Internet but that when you come to the facts is indeed very hard and probably still has to be done for the first time in The Internet History.

Of course this open us to some risk: especially having to deal with people that have not a basic Business Experience. At the end everything come to the trust we are able to built in them. We believe that the previous 10 months results in The Investors Corner and the actual system history, that even with the last changes and our profit balancing action have provided hundreds of people with high returns, can let our members to trust us and to be interested in being part of the future Public Company. Also, when it comes to a public Company, usually just a few people, rich people, are the ones that start the Company with capital injections and with a smart par value for the shares. Then in one year or two they get the Company listed, and they earn huge money selling part of the shares to the public in the market and letting then the small investors to later suffer from market floating results while they will keep the huge part of the Company profit and the high salaries that they award themselves.

To combine The Investors Corner option with the build of the future Public Company and its starting capital is a way to invert this rule and to open a new opportunity to the normal people like we are.

Talk Thailand: Also you recently announced some new "Board Resolutions" how will these changes effect current and new investors?

This is painless! Or at least it should be!

Really...the last changes have just balanced the situation.
We know we have received some negative comments around, almost from people that have not understood our actions, or that, and this is bad, really bad, post fake negative comments in public forums just with the aim to damage us and without having been members or having developed any money relationship with us.

There are 5 basic principles in The Investors Corner that we always applied:

1. We Guarantee only the Capital ( better that any other including Institutional Banks Offers that does not guarantee anything at all).

2. How we payback Principals can be changed at anytime. What is important is that we can anticipate the principal PayBack but not delay it when a plan is expired.

3. PROFITS ARE NOT GUARANTEED ANYWAY.

4. PROFITS CAN NOT BE CONSIDERED AS ACCRUED UNTIL YOU HAVE CLOSED AND CASHED OUT THE PLAN.

5. PROFITS ARE BASED ONLY AND ALWAYS ON OUR COMPANY PROFITS SO CAN BE CHANGED AT ANY TIME TO KEEP THEM BALANCED. In a few words if we earn $ 1000 from our Business we can not pay out $ 2,000.

The last changes have been applied just to balance the profits in the last 10 months.
We have paid already more then the profits we earned, but we have considered it a good promotional investment for our Business. So the last changes have "affected" plans that already earned to our members 50% or more in the single plan (Single Profit CAP) or 29% or more (Overall profit CAP) in an overall profit for all the plans still opened.
These plans have been settled to be closed, but still the members can choose to convert them to "Shares Plan". In this case they will stay open until the natural end.

Someone has interpretated this like a way for us to force members in the "Go Public" project.

It is not: it is just an option for the plans that from the past earned already huge amounts.

Basically we said; OK! Company profit in the last month was XY. You have already earned equal or more to the Company profit, you had received back already all your prinicpals, so we close your plan. Feel free to open a new one if you wish.
But because you have shown trust in us and we believe you can continue to trust us, we let to you the choice to use the remaining time of this plan to build for you a share balance that will guarantee to you Shares in the future Public Company.

We have numbers to substain our position and to show how much we did for all our members.

Just go to download the full history of The Investors Corner. You will be surprised:

https://www.theinvestorscorner.com/downl...istory.zip

Closed plans have not been considered and all the money earned in closed plans were already cashed and accrued from our members.
Opened plans not in profit yet are still open and providing daily profits as usual.

We have introduced the CAP idea that is to keep general profits balanced to actual Company ptofits. The CAP used to reset the system were based on our past profits.

As per today the CAP's have been already changed and are based on our next 6 months profits prevision.

Talk Thailand: How does the new 10% bonus system work?

This is very simple. Any new plan opened with the purpose to collect shares for the future Public Company will receive a 10% bonus on the subscribed principal.
If you subscribe a $ 1,000 plan for shares the system will calculate the profit on $ 1,100.

The same for already opened plans converted to shares.

At conversion time the system will add to the principal originally deposited a 10% bonus and from that moment profits will be calculated on the new amount including the bonus.

Talk Thailand: Are you planning to make any additional changes to the program in the near future?

Not drastic changes! I mean. Soemone says we have changed the system 3 times in almost 40 days.

The correct way is: The Investors Corner started on April 2006. Until January 10th 2007 we never changed the profits percentages nor any part of the system.

In the new year we have slightly changed the profits ( lowering them) one time only and this is in our rights, never happened to our members to get one only day at PROFIT ZERO.

Plus 2 times we have applied administrative changes that are in our rights to be applied and that have not affected in any way members money.

Unless someone still pretend us to pay more profits then the ones earned from.
The Company we believe we have shown high honesty, integrity and loyalty to all our members.

We are not an HYIP. Once again ware here to stay and we can not pay more of what we get from the Business and in particular from The Gold Exchange Business

Any change we apply, has a financial sound. If you look at the full picture this is very easy to be udnerstood. And still I have to insist on the fact that our members highly contribute to our results. More Business they help us to generate more profits they will get.

This is easy as 2 + 2 = 4. But still has not been understood completely.

Talk Thailand: Recently Asian Pay announced that they have launched a Credit Card platform. This is very exciting news. Can you please tell us more about this exciting development?

Our Main Business wtill remain The Online Payments Business.
Credit Cards Operations are a must to complete our offer. This is why not only we allow Credit cards operations on Asianpay Payments (https://asianpay.com) but we have created our own Payment Gateway Solution (https://www.asianpay.biz )and we are working on a new project that will be ready at the end of this month and will allow small and medium merchants to offer products on sale and to accept Credit Cards without the needs to have their own web site or their own catalogue and shopping cart, but taking advantages of a Global Shopping Platform fully Integrated with our Online Gateway. This at ZERO SETUP FEES, ZERO MONTHLY FEES and VERY COMPETITIVE CREDIT CARDS TRANSACTIONS FEES.

Basically we are working to complete our offer and to be able to be of services to anyone.

Merchants loving PayPal style will use AsianPay Payment Merchants loving WorldPay or 2checkout style will use AsianPay Gateway
Merchants that can not afford even low setup fees or even can not afford to have their own web site will be able to take advantages of our integrated Global Shopping Mall platform

What is important to say is that we have implemented a Verification and Certification system on both sides; buyers and sellers. This will guarantee a pleasant and safe shopping experience to the buyers, and a chargeback free selling experience to the sellers.
Moreover AsianPay merchants can build their promotional offers to our Secure Card Members offering to them a discount on their sale prices. Thei can also offer to cover Credit cards charges to the buyers.
Also what is important to say is that when it come to a money transaction the rule Know Your Customer is mandatory. Well, AsianPay Payments is the only system that can really say that at Credit card transaction time we already know and have verified in full both seller and buyer.

Talk Thailand: When do you expect the platform to be available on a Global Basis?

AsianPay Payments and AsianPay Gateway are already fully working on a Global Basis and we are looking for Merchants interested to grow their Business with a trustable and
safe Credit cards payment solution.

Talk Thailand: In your update you mentioned that you would like to go public in 3-4 years. Can you please give us a more accurate target date?

Regretfully not at the present time. But The full plan will be ratified in the next annual meeting of the shareholders and the date will be established there. I can anticipate an indicative date to be between year 2009 last quarter and year 2010 fist quarter.

The 3 years plan is based on a realistic consideration of the many things that have to be settled in The Company to allow it to be immediately profitable for exisiting and assigned shareholders
from the beginning and to present itself as a Solid and Trustable Operative Business.

Talk Thailand: There are many advantages in going public, can you please tell us what advantages would be the key ones for Asian Pay?

As I answered above, the main advatnage will be the possibility to incredibly grow our Business Opportunities opening us to many different development that by Law are allowed only in particular situations. For example the e-card license I mentioned above
require a minimum Paid Capital of THB 220,000,000. Only a Public Company could achieve this value in Thailand unless just few rich people put the amount together in a Private Company.
But no one of us is what could be considered a rich person.

Talk Thailand: What do you see as the disadvantages in going public?

I do not see for us any particular disavantages, at least until we will decide to get listed in The Stock exchange ( that is not authomatic when you move to a Public Company and is not required).

In the eventuality we will move to the next step and we will get the Company listed, sensible changes to the Company should be taken to protect our value from the market's sharks. We have time to prepare our plan on this.

Talk Thailand: How much "registered capital" does a Company in Thailand need before going public?

To register the Public Company: THB 200,000,000
To be listed: THB 300,000,000

Talk Thailand: Does Asian Pay anticipate any acquisitions, partnerships or mergers before going public?

Not at the present time. We are pretty happy with our actual situation. Our Holding Company Chiangmai Solutions is developing new businesses and using Asianpay services. Asianpay Co Ltd. in Thailand own the 55% of the Singaporean Subsidiary AsianPay (SINGAPORE) Pte. Ltd.

We are at the present time well established in many different Business including also an Export Company (InThai trading Co. Ltd.) partially owned from our Mother Company Chiangmai Solutions.

However it is always possible that we will look in possible partnership or acquisitions opportunities in the future.

Talk Thailand: Who, if any are their major competitors?

We have competitors in many different Businesses but basically we are looking first of all to be the first Asian Online Payments And Money Circulation offering such a large numbers of combined services to follow a Company Strategy that is pretty different from the one
our competitors run. We will never display 100,000,000 members and plus like PayPal.

It is not our target: our target is to make of any potential Customer a lifetime Customer offering a range of services that will completely cover any Internet business need our Customers can have.

At the present time, through our Businesses, our customers can:

Register a domain name: https://www.chiangmaihosting.com

Hosts his/her web site at the lower prices on Internet with the better quality: https://www.chiangmaihosting.com

Get their web site designed with original templates, not pre-made universally COPIED templates at a fraction of the normal costs: https://www.chiangmaihosting.com

Take advantage of a skilled team of designers and programmer that can include in any web site a full E-commerce enabled system accepting Credit cards payments in minutes both from AsianPay Payments (https://asianpay.com) or AsianPay Gateway (https://www.asianpay.biz)
AsianPay payments will also offer very soon the possibilty for WorldWide merchants to combine their own direct sales, with bargain offered at NO INSERTION FEES through AsianPay Auctions, soon to be opened and that will be the first real Online Global Auction Web Site offered to all Asianpay members.

In the very near future participate in the biggest Asian Shopping Mall that was ever opened:
Asia Go Shopping (http://www.asiagoshopping.biz - this URL still not working, but will be very soon) with NO SETUP FEES, NO MONTHLY FEES and VERY LOW CREDIT CARDS TRANSACTIONS FEES

All Gold Businesses Lovers can easily take advantage of the most profitable Gold Exchange Business

https://www.thailandgoldexchange.com

We offer low fees combined with a weekly rebate system that can earn huge amounts to recurring customers and the system has 6 level deep referals program implemented to make it as much interesting as possible

Moreover, we also run our own retail business for Thailand products (http://www.chiangmaisolutions.com) and our own export business for Container or LCL (less then full container loaded) orders from any
Country ( http://www.of-siam.biz ). On this Business we have a strong 7 years experience and we offer full services starting from Sourcing products, to professional packing, professional Containers loading, shipping and administrative issues.

Talk Thailand: What regulatory and business affairs need to be completed before public offering?

Standard registration and regulatory compliance issues like Paid Up capital, credit and criminal ceck on shareholders and directors and similar issues. Our lawyer office and our accounting office are trustable
and really experienced in Thailand and will make it very easy for us to be achieved.

Talk Thailand: Why is the offering 3-4 years out? Could it be done sooner?

The 3 years plan is based on a realistic consideration of the many things that have to be settled in The Company to allow it to be imemdiately profitable for exisiting and assigned shareholders from the beginning and to present itself as a Solid and Trustable Operative Business.
I always prefer to move carefully. This does not mean that we will not be able to achieve the result sooner.
It absolutely depends on our members commitment in helping us to grow our Business.

Talk Thailand: Does Asian Pay have an opening par value targeted?

We are not thinking yet at all to the Stock listing issue. We will have a par value target just for the instance to build the Public Company capital and this target will have to be established in the next few weeks to allow existing shareholders to be awarded fro their loyalty, and new issuing shareholders to be correctly rewarded for the shares they will subscribe from The Investors Corner.

Talk Thailand: Is Asian Pay looking at offering a global e-currency card that can be loaded quickly using a variety of e-currencies?

We are working on a Debit card solutions since May 2006 with CardOnePlus.
After many problerms experienced from Debit Cards provider in the last 6 months due to changes to MasterCard policy and generally in International banking rules, we believe we are now finally very close to offer our Asianpay Debit Card.
It will be a amtter of still a couple of weeks and we will keep our members informed from our web sites.

But we are already dealing with Visa International and their offices in Singapore to evaluate the possibility to issue also an Asianpay Branded Visa Debit Card.

I take this opportunity to add a note. Our Company, instead of many others Payment Processor Company, has been fully scanned in all our servers, networks and databases and duly certified from Visa, MasterCard and Amex accordingly to the latest PCI (Payment Cards Industry) rules and regulations.

We include in our Card Services Verified By Visa and MasterCard Secure Code protections that even PayPal is not offering yet. This is a very important part of our security commitment to offer safe transactions to all our merchants.

Talk Thailand: I recently read that you now have 3 offices. Can you please give us more details about the purpose and responsibilities of each office?

Of course, I'm glad you asked this question. To open 3 offices and one of them in another Country (Singapore) forming a Subsidiary Company has not been an easy issue and represents part of an huge investment we are doing on Human resources and logistic resources to put the basis of a strong local development that we believe is the winning strategy for our Business.

At the present time ChiangMai office is still the head office. All administrative and accounting issues are managed there as well as the Online and Offline support to our Customers. I want just take this opportunity to underline how we have built an excellent popularity for our Company with a very strong and timely support.

Our average answering time after 18 months of operations is between 3 to 6 hours.

I believe no other Internet Based Business can show the same commitment to Customer Support. Especially in the Payment Industry. And our support works always on Saturday and Sunday also.

Singapore Subsidiary Company and its offices represents the first step in the Asian development of our Business. Thei duties are at the present time to manage the daily money job referred to AsianPay Payments, provide transfer to Customers and follow up with banks. They will be soon in charge for all verification and certification requests coming from Asia being able to operate on at least 3 languages:
English, Malay and Chinese,

I have to add something also about this matter: we are planning to move to Hong Kong and open our new subsidiary there in the next 6 months. We strongly believe that The Chinese Market has to be developed like the most interesting e-commerce fast growing
market in the next 5 years. I will also be personally present to an E-commerce forum to be held later this year in China to start to better introduce our Company in that market.
An Hong Kong based subsidiary is a mandatory issue to enter the Chinese Market

Bangkok offices are the newest ones. At the present time they cover any verification and certification issue and have been opened for two mandatory reasons:

1. To cooperate in administrative and management issues being closest to the Thailand Business Center.
2. To strongly contribute with a presence in The Thailand Capital to the development and promotion of our CORE Business and to be closest to events where could be interesting for us to be present.

Talk Thailand: Can you please give us an insight into your vision for Asian Pay for the future?

I believe I have already answered to this question through all my answers above.

We sincerely appreciate Mr. Carlo Sorio taking the time to give Talk Thailand members a better insight into Asian Pay

Thanks a lot for this great opportunity to share with your members and visitors our Vision. I really appreciated it and I want, one more time, from this plave thanks all our Shareholders and members that so strongly in our full life until today have always trusted
and supported our Company in the good moments but also in the bad moments that always occur during a Company Life.

With My Best Regards

Carlo Sorio
President & CEO
AsianPay Co. Ltd.
AsianPay (SINGAPORE) Pte. Ltd.
Chiangmai Solutions Co. Ltd.
InThai Trading Co. Ltd.

I`m going for excellent! :wink: