The Supreme Court in Thailand has ruled that former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra's family should be stripped of more than half its fortune.
The court said about $US1.4 billion of the assets were gained illegally through a conflict of interest when Mr Thaksin was prime minister.
Funds worth $US2.3 billion were frozen after Mr Thaksin's elected government was overthrown in a military coup in 2006.
The sale of a telecom company, Shin Corp, to a Singapore state investment firm, Temasek, in January 2006 was one of the main catalysts for widespread protests calling for Mr Thaksin to resign.
The government applied for the seizure of the proceeds from the sale.
However, the Supreme Court said "to seize all the money would be unfair since some of it was made before Thaksin became prime minister".
Mr Thaksin, who is living in exile, has denied any wrongdoing. The BBC reports the full extent of his fortune is unknown.
