Thailand’s Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced that amendments to the Digital Asset Business Law and the Cybercrime Law that took effect on 13 April 2025 enable a faster process to restrict access to foreign digital asset platforms that are deemed to be providing services to persons in Thailand without a licence, including through solicitation or advertising. The SEC set out characteristics that can bring a foreign platform within the scope of “providing services to persons in Thailand”, including use of the Thai language, Thai-identifying domain names, allowing payments in Thai baht or via Thailand-based accounts, choosing Thai law or Thai courts for disputes, paying search engines to facilitate access for users in Thailand, and establishing a local office, entity, or personnel. Under the amended Cybercrime Law, the Ministry of Digital Economy and Society is authorized to block websites and applications of foreign operators that meet these characteristics and lack the required licence, while digital asset operators must exchange information, screen and suspend cybercrime-related transactions or accounts in a manner comparable to commercial banks, implement expedited refund mechanisms for victims, and comply with blacklist-based prohibitions on dealing with persons or wallet addresses linked to cybercrime. The SEC also noted that individuals who open or allow the use of digital asset accounts as mule accounts face penalties of up to three years’ imprisonment or a fine of up to THB 300,000, or both. The SEC indicated it will coordinate with relevant agencies and continue monitoring compliance, while urging investors to use licensed digital asset business operators in Thailand and cautioning that using foreign platforms can increase risks of scams and money laundering misuse.

Original source View in tracker