thailand

According to Cryptopolitan, the Securities and Exchange Commission of Thailand has officially finalized the cryptocurrency "travel rule," requiring digital asset operators to identify the sender and receiver of each crypto transaction, effective from February 27, 2027. Non-compliant transfers will be prohibited at that time.Operators must establish risk transfer policies, collect identity data of customers and counterparties, transmit sender and receiver information along with the transfer, and retain transaction records for at least five years (with the first two years required to be provided to regulators upon request). The most challenging aspect is the requirement for operators to verify that users have control over the funds in their self-custody wallets. The new regulations aim to prevent money laundering and terrorist financing, aligning Thailand's regulatory standards with the Financial Action Task Force's international anti-money laundering standards.

The Securities and Exchange Commission of Thailand (SEC) has officially approved the travel rule for crypto assets, requiring digital asset operators to verify the ownership or control of wallets when customers send or receive crypto assets to self-custody wallets, and to retain transaction-related information for at least five years for regulatory review. Pornanong Budsaratragoon, Secretary-General of the Thai SEC, stated that the rule aims to reduce the risk of digital asset operators being used for money laundering and terrorist financing.The new regulations were finalized after two rounds of public consultations this year, with the first round presenting a draft in March and a notification draft released in June. The Thai SEC stated that most stakeholders expressed support. As the travel rule is implemented, Thailand is considering expanding the access to regulated crypto products. On Monday, the Thai SEC proposed allowing intermediaries to offer specific crypto derivatives traded on regulated overseas exchanges to retail investors.In the days prior, regulators also advanced the draft rules for spot Bitcoin and Ethereum exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and simultaneously sought opinions on the foreign digital asset custodians used by funds investing in crypto assets. Thailand's move aligns with global regulatory trends, as the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) estimates that by 2026, 83% of surveyed jurisdictions will have enacted travel rule legislation.

The Securities and Exchange Commission of Thailand (SEC) has proposed allowing intermediaries to provide certain digital asset derivatives traded overseas to retail investors. According to the proposal, eligible products must be similar to crypto derivatives traded domestically in Thailand, including aspects such as underlying assets, duration, leverage, and settlement methods. At the same time, these products must be traded on exchanges that adopt central counterparty clearing and are supervised by regulatory bodies belonging to specific international regulatory or exchange organizations.Crypto derivatives that do not meet the above conditions will only be available to institutional investors. The Thai SEC stated that institutional investors are better equipped to assess and manage complex and high-risk products. Current rules only allow intermediaries to provide relevant investment services to retail and high-net-worth clients when overseas derivatives are similar to domestic trading products, while overseas crypto derivatives, due to their varying structures and risk levels, require targeted regulations.This consultation is the latest initiative by Thailand to incorporate crypto-related products into the regulated capital market. The Thai SEC officially designated cryptocurrencies and digital tokens as permissible derivative underlying assets in a notice issued on March 5 and is discussing potential contract specifications with the Thailand Futures Exchange. The consultation will continue until September 30, and the Thai SEC has not yet announced the proposed implementation date for the revisions.

According to Cointelegraph, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) of Thailand has advanced its regulatory framework for locally listed spot Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs from a principled proposal to the rule draft stage and is publicly soliciting opinions on this. The regulatory agency released two consultation documents on Monday, one containing the rule draft for Thailand's crypto ETFs, and the other proposing qualification principles for foreign digital asset custodians.In the initial phase, asset management companies can establish passive ETFs that track Bitcoin or Ethereum, which are the only qualified crypto assets. According to the proposed rules, Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs will only trade on the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET), with each ETF tracking a single crypto asset and required to maintain at least 80% net asset exposure to that asset within each accounting year. Mutual funds and private funds can also invest in Thailand's local crypto ETFs, as well as the foreign crypto ETFs they are permitted to invest in, but must comply with existing investment limits. However, in the initial phase, the regulatory agency does not allow alternative products linked to foreign crypto ETFs, including depositary receipts that track them.Regarding custody, the revised plan still primarily relies on domestic digital asset custodians as the main service providers in the initial phase, and the Thai SEC may allow the use of qualified foreign digital asset custodians when necessary. Foreign custodians must be supervised by a regulatory agency with legal authority and meet the regulatory and investor asset protection standards deemed sufficient by the Thai SEC. The deadline for public opinion collection on the two consultation documents is September 20.

Chainalysis posted on platform X that the Coldcard hack is particularly devastating for Canadian Bitcoin holders. Our analysis of the attackers and victims found that Canadian BTC holders accounted for 25% of the attributable losses.According to estimates compiled by Galaxy Research, the losses could be as high as $110 million, and we analyzed the geographical distribution of this ongoing hacking attack. Users in Australia, the United States, and Thailand also experienced significant losses.

The Thai Immigration Bureau recently issued a warning, pointing out that while the cross-border trade of amulets is thriving, it is being exploited by gray capital networks as a money laundering channel.From online gambling, telecom fraud to drug smuggling, some illegal proceeds are being disguised as legitimate business income through means such as amulet trading, fake auctions, temple rentals, and cryptocurrency peer-to-peer transfers.

According to Bloomberg, Thailand's True Internet Data Center is seeking approximately $2 billion in equivalent loans to build new data center facilities to help Thailand develop into a regional AI and cloud services hub.In terms of financing structure, the loan will be divided into three parts, with about $1.8 billion denominated in US dollars, and the other two parts denominated in Thai baht. Sources familiar with the matter requested anonymity as the details of the transaction have not yet been publicly disclosed.

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) of Thailand has filed a criminal complaint against the cryptocurrency exchange Bitkub Online and two former directors, Sakolkorn Sakavee and Thaweesap Rawan, accusing them of submitting false financial reports between May and October 2021. The case has been handed over to the Economic Crime Suppression Division (ECD) of Thailand for investigation, and the prosecution will decide whether to formally charge them.The SEC stated that Bitkub suffered a cyber attack in May 2021, resulting in the theft of 16 types of digital assets, with losses exceeding $50 million. Regulatory investigations revealed that Bitkub did not reflect the relevant losses in its daily net capital report Form DA 1 from May 10 to October 30, 2021. The SEC alleged that the relevant executives made false statements in the company's official documents, leading regulators to believe that customer assets were intact and that the company had not suffered financial losses. Bitkub subsequently completed the acquisition of alternative assets in late October 2021, but the SEC believes that the reports during this period constituted false statements.In a statement on July 23, Bitkub asserted that existing customer holdings are secure and accounts are complete. Bitkub stated that its co-founders purchased alternative assets in the same quantity and currency to cover the losses and claimed that the cyber theft incident was reported to law enforcement on May 10, 2021.

According to local media reports in Thailand, Thailand will require individuals to verify the source of funds when depositing more than 5 million Thai Baht (approximately 150,000 USD) in cash. This intervention expands the compliance responsibilities of commercial banks regarding cash networks, large currency exchanges, precious metal transactions, and suspicious stablecoin transactions, directly preventing regulated entities from fostering systemic corruption or a shadow economy.In addition, the Bank of Thailand and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) have jointly conducted audits focusing on Tether (USDT) to identify and prevent illegal fund flows. This crackdown also includes strengthening controls over precious metal transactions, requiring banks to report suspicious patterns, such as rapid digital purchases and same-day physical withdrawals, to combat money laundering activities.

According to the Bangkok Post, the Bank of Thailand is advancing a 1:1 baht-backed stablecoin plan and expects to launch a public consultation (open call for opinions) on the related proposal by the end of this year.

According to Jinshi News, the Governor of the Bank of Thailand stated that banks will be allowed to issue Thai baht stablecoins this year.

According to the New Straits Times, Thailand has issued an arrest warrant for Chinese businessman Wang Yicheng, accusing him of being involved in a transnational network that uses illegal cryptocurrency mining to launder money from fraud and online gambling. The Thai Special Investigation Bureau stated that Wang Yicheng was charged with theft and violating the Computer Crimes Act in November 2025, and is currently suspected of having fled the country. Thai authorities are cooperating with international law enforcement agencies to track his whereabouts.

According to Decrypt, the Thai Special Investigations Department (DSI) has expanded its investigation into the "gray Chinese capital" network. This network is suspected of using illegal cryptocurrency mining to launder money from phone scams and online gambling, with an annual amount involved exceeding 30 billion Thai Baht (approximately 300 million USD). Currently, authorities have seized 6,390 mining machines, with illegal electricity theft losses reaching 953 million Thai Baht (approximately 29 million USD), and arrest warrants have been issued for 4 Chinese financiers and 4 Myanmar nationals.The U.S. Secret Service has seized over 17.8 million USD in cryptocurrency assets related to key suspect Wang Yicheng, who is alleged to be connected to "pig butchering" scam operations. Additionally, the investigation also involves several officials from Thai electricity agencies and law enforcement personnel, and the case has been handed over to the National Anti-Corruption Commission for handling.

The Ministry of Interior of Thailand, in conjunction with provincial electricity authorities, police, and local administrative officials, conducted a joint law enforcement operation this Saturday in five provinces: Ubon Ratchathani, Yasothon, Amnat Charoen, Roi Et, and Maha Sarakham, inspecting 14 locations in total. The operation confiscated 315 digital currency mining devices, and investigators found that the individuals involved supplied power to the mining machines by tampering with electricity meters and illegally connecting to the power supply. The total estimated loss reached 40.38 million baht (approximately 1.227 million USD), which includes a 5.38 million baht fine for electricity violations and about 35 million baht in unpaid electricity bills. Relevant evidence has been collected, and authorities have filed lawsuits against the individuals involved.

According to Thaiger, Thai police arrested 8 suspects in Bangkok. The gang is suspected of robbing a 35-year-old Chinese man of 196,000 Thai Baht during an offline cryptocurrency exchange.It is reported that the victim went to a gas station café in the Bang Khen district of Bangkok to complete the exchange of Thai Baht for cryptocurrency as agreed online. After receiving the cash, the suspects fled on motorcycles. A total of 9 people were involved in the case, using 6 motorcycles to escape, and 1 suspect is still at large. Police seized vehicles, clothing items related to the case, and 81,000 Thai Baht in cash. The 8 arrested individuals have been charged with robbery, aiding in escape, and conspiracy to commit a crime, and the case has been transferred to the local police station for further investigation.

According to the Bangkok Post, Thai police raided a scam base in the Saraphi district of Chiang Mai province, arresting 10 Chinese citizens and seizing 67 mobile phones, 7 iPads, and 13 laptops.

According to The Block, Olena Oblamska, a Ukrainian citizen accused of co-founding the crypto investment platform Forsage, was extradited from Thailand to the United States and pleaded not guilty to a charge of conspiracy to commit wire fraud in federal court in Portland, Oregon. She is the first of four defendants to appear in a U.S. court, while the other three Russian defendants are still at large.Prosecutors allege that Forsage is a Ponzi scheme based on Ethereum, BNB Chain, and Tron smart contracts, involving approximately $340 million. Blockchain analysis shows that over 80% of Ethereum project investors received less ETH than they deposited, and more than half of the investors received nothing. If convicted, Oblamska faces up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

The U.S. Department of Justice stated that Olena Oblamska, a Ukrainian national accused of operating the cryptocurrency investment platform Forsage, was extradited from Thailand to the United States last week and appeared in federal court in Oregon, pleading not guilty to the charge of "conspiracy to commit wire fraud."Prosecutors claim that Forsage operated under the guise of an investment project based on Ethereum blockchain "smart contracts," but in reality constituted a Ponzi and pyramid investment scheme, involving approximately $340 million. Currently, Olena Oblamska is being held in custody awaiting trial, with jury proceedings expected to begin on July 14, 2026; if convicted, she could face up to 20 years in federal prison.

According to China News Weekly, a 19-year-old female college student from Guangdong was recently invited to Thailand to participate in the Water Splashing Festival. After landing, she was controlled and is suspected to have been sold to a Myanmar telecom fraud park near the Three Pagodas area on the Thailand-Myanmar border.Her family stated that the other party claimed to have purchased her for 29,000 U and then demanded a ransom of 30,000 U, equivalent