The first signs that financial institutions were resuming normal financial business
occurred in 2000 as remaining finance companies began to submit applications to the
Bank of Thailand asking for permission to expand their scopes of business into credit
cards and loan servicing business. In the pre-crisis world, relevant departments within
the Bank of Thailand would vet such requests and submit formal positions to senior
management for final approval in a timely manner. But in the post-crisis period, where
the majority of finance companies suffered irreparable losses from their disproportionate
exposure to the real estate sector relative to commercial banks, authorities questioned the
suitability of reviewing and approving requests on a case-by-case basis relative to
looking at the scope of business in its entirety.