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Crypto has made a stellar mark globally this year, which is why many countries are now looking at its incorporation/regulation. However, some countries, especially financial bodies, are wary of this technology. Recently, the Central Bank of Thailand has given a statement urging its banks not to be involved in digital assets.
The Central Bank of Thailand gave this statement yesterday, saying that it doesn’t want commercial banks to trade in digital assets. The Bank’s senior director Chayawadee Chai-Anant issued the abovementioned statement. This comes at a time when Thai lenders are increasingly investing in local digital asset exchanges.
On the other hand, many commercial banks in the country are investing in local crypto exchanges. Siam Commerical Bank had announced the acquisition of Bitkub. Also, the Bank of Ayudhya announced a 1.3 billion baht ($38.7 million) investment in Zipmex, another crypto exchange.
However, coming back to the Central Bank’s statement, Ms. Chayawadee told the news conference:
“We don’t want banks to be directly involved in digital asset trading because banks are (responsible) for customer deposits and the public and there is risk.”
She also added:
“If a company is a shareholder, that is another issue.”
Crypto trading in Thailand has gained momentum since last year. Today, many retailers and real estate developers accept digital assets as payments.
Moreover, according to the Securities and Exchange Commission data, crypto exchanges in the country brought about 205 billion baht ($6.11 billion) in digital asset transactions in November. This is partly why the central bank has given a statement/warning to the companies accepting cryptocurrencies as a payment option.
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