Ruenvadee Suwanmongkol, director-general of the Legal Execution Department, is the sole nominee to fill Rapee Sucharitakul's shoes for the top post at the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), says a source at the Finance Ministry.
She was nominated for the job, and the application period closed on Sept 21. Ms Ruenvadee is more qualified than the three other candidates, the source said, given her work experience at the securities watchdog and the top executive level at other state agencies.
The Finance Ministry has already proposed Ms Ruenvadee's nomination to Finance Minister Apisak Tantivarawong before forwarding it to the cabinet for final approval, the source said.
If appointed, she would be the first female secretary-general of the SEC.
A source from the capital market deemed it highly likely that the new SEC secretary-general will be announced before the year ends, as the commission is formulating its work plan for next year.
Ms Ruenvadee started her career at the SEC. Her last position there was deputy director before moving to the Justice Ministry's legal affairs bureau.
She rose through the ranks at the ministry as deputy director of the Office of Justice Affairs, inspector-general and director-general of the Probation Department. She was reshuffled to the top job at the Legal Execution Department by the National Council for Peace and Order in 2014.
Ms Ruenvadee earned a bachelor's degree from Chulalongkorn University's faculty of law, taking first-class honours, before pursuing an MBA at the University of California, Berkeley and a Master of Laws at Harvard Law School.
Outgoing SEC secretary-general Rapee Sucharitakul, whose tenure ends on May 1, 2019, said the board of directors already sent a list of applicants vying for the position to the Finance Ministry in early October after careful consideration.
Mr Rapee did not specify whether there is more than a single nominee on the submitted list, saying he was not in a position to comment on the matter.
He said he could have applied to extend his tenure but decided against it. After his term ends in May, Mr Rapee will not be allowed to hold any position in the capital market for at least two years to prevent a conflict of interest, a normal practice for those stepping down from the post.
