Mr Charoen runs ThaiBev and its parent company TCC in much the same way as Thailand's other Chinese tycoons - as a strictly family business.

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Nowhere is the Chinese propensity to base business on relationships more obvious than in the family-run firms that make up the bulk of the private sector.

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The Sutardjas are of Chinese ancestry and grew up in Jakarta, part of a wealthy family that owned a Mercedes parts business.

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