RICH LIST: The Fixer, the Jet, and Thaksin’s Shadow Wealth

It was April 2025, and a quiet meeting in a Thai restaurant in Bangkok was more than it seemed. One of the participants was Thaksin Shinawatra, the returned exile and enduring patriarch of Thailand's most powerful political family. His companion was Benjamin Mauerberger, a South African national, a convicted criminal on the run, and a notorious fixer for Cambodia’s elite (exclusive photo after the jump).

As we have learned, Mauerberger was in the process of negotiating the purchase of a Bombardier Global G7500, a luxury jet that Thaksin now uses for his global travels. The fact that Thaksin would rely on a figure of Mauerberger’s reputation raises serious questions about his connections to an international underworld with deep roots in Cambodia.

Our exclusive revelation of this new connection between Thaksin and Cambodia comes amid a political scandal that has rocked the nation. During a tense border conflict with Cambodia, a leaked phone call exposed a "chummy" conversation between Thaksin's daughter, Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra, and the powerful former Cambodian leader Hun Sen. The casual, familiar nature of the call during a time of national tension led to widespread public outrage and put a harsh spotlight on Thaksin's long-standing ties to Cambodia, a country where he has spent considerable time in exile. This latest detail—his reliance on a criminal fixer with deep connections to Cambodia's power elite—magnifies the focus on his immense and shadowy wealth.

This is a story of a hidden empire, a complex web of family holdings and global ventures that continues to paint a far grander picture of his wealth than the last official numbers. It underscores a central truth of Thai power: money is not merely a reward for success; it is a strategic asset. At Brazen, we are dedicated to re-evaluating his financial standing and to showing how Thaksin’s shadowy dealings are a key to understanding his immense and untraceable fortune.

- Tom

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