Junta boss Min Aung Hlaing’s son Aung Pyae Sone profits handsomely from Myanmar’s market for tires and other rubber products through a network of companies he controls, an investigation reveals.
A key figure is Aung Pyae Sone’s trusted business associate Maung Maung Naing, who often acts as a proxy for the junta boss’s son in managing his portfolio of companies.
An ethnic Chinese man in his late 50s, Maung Maung Naing “has had a tire shop for over 30 years ago near Myaynigone junction [in Yangon’s Sanchaung Township]. Later he became one of the most trusted frontmen doing business for the junta chief’s family,” a businessman in Yangon said.
In this capacity he heads YHI Aung (Myanmar), which was established in 2018 and in which Aung Pyae Sone holds a significant share. The company imports and distributes leading tire brands like Yokohama and Dunlop, as well as Total’s ELF engine oil.
YHI Aung has effectively monopolized the car tire and engine oil markets in Myanmar.
In a more complex arrangement, money from the tire business also flows into Aung Pyae Sone’s pockets through his Capital Ace Company, which was established in May 2024. One director of Capital Ace is Maung Maung Naing, according to a Yangon businessman who is close to the crony’s family.
Last September, Capital Ace formed a secret partnership with the notorious military-owned conglomerate Myanmar Economic Holdings Limited (MEHL), which has been sanctioned by the U.S., EU, and UK, Yangon business sources with ties to MEHL and the industry told The Irrawaddy.
The arrangement with MEHL ranges from raw-materials supply to finished-product acquisition, effectively allowing the junta’s son to profit from military-linked production.
To conceal their military origin, the tires, previously sold under the “Tristar” brand by MEHL, have now been rebranded and are distributed under the apt name “Joker.”
Aung Pyae Sone has secured exclusive distribution rights for Joker tires through Capital Ace and another one of his subsidiaries, named CRV, which was registered in 2017 and is based in Mandalay.
The leaked agreement between MEHL and Capital Ace was published this week by Khit Thit Media, an exile Burmese-language media outlet.
Khit Thit Media said the rebranding effort is “a clear attempt to obscure the direct connection between these products and the military, allowing them to be sold without raising suspicion.”
Aung Pyae Sone’s extensive business portfolio, which also includes companies involved in construction, telecommunications, and tourism, has long raised concerns about the concentration of wealth within the junta’s inner circle. Most recently he has made headlines for his role in importing solar panels, whose use his father has been promoting amid Myanmar’s chronic power outages.
“The latest revelation about the rebranded tires highlights the junta’s continued efforts to exploit the country’s resources for personal gain, even amidst international sanctions and widespread economic hardship,” a Burmese economist said.
This article is supported by the Transition Promotion Programme, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic.
