Blockchain associations from Australia and five Southeast Asian nations are joining forces to promote blockchain development and education. Blockchain organizations from Australia, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines signed a memorandum of understanding Thursday to promote blockchain collaboration in the Asia Pacific, Business Times reports. Initiated by Blockchain Association Singapore, or BAS, the MoU aims to engage with regulators to ensure legal compliance alongside raising industry awareness and education through a new blockchain consortium called the ASEAN Blockchain Consortium, or ABC. The ABC includes BAS, Blockchain Australia, Distributed Ledger Technology Association of the Philippines, Malaysia’s Labuan International Business and …

Kasikornbank, or KBank, one of Thailand’s largest banks, has begun experimenting with DeFi services as part of its business expansion plan. According to a report by Bangkok Post, the bank’s decentralized finance exploration is being spearheaded by KBank’s tech subsidiary, Kasikorn Business Technology Group, or KBTG. Commenting on KBank’s DeFi plans, KBTG chairman Ruangroj Poonpol said: “DeFi is a key exploration for KBank Group this year […] The project is being explored through KBTG under the second phase of the company’s digital transformation programme.” According to Poonpol, DeFi could hold the key to improving financial inclusion for people in Thailand …

Crypto adoption appears to be booming in Thailand, with the local Securities and Exchange Commission, or SEC, estimating domestic crypto volumes have increased by nearly 600% since November. Data compiled by the Thai’s SEC and published by Bloomberg indicates combined volume across licensed Thai crypto exchanges increased from 574.5 million in November to $3.96 billion in November. Speaking to Bloomberg, Atichanan Pulges, co-founder of top Thai exchange Bitkub, estimated volume on his platform had increased by 40% between January and February. Pulges claimed Bitkub represents 90% of local trade activity and services 300,000 customers. Despite the surge in licensed crypto …

The Bank of Thailand has set its agenda for a retail central bank digital currency, with preliminary testing protocols scheduled to begin in Q2 2022. Thailand’s central bank made this known in a press release issued on Friday calling for public comments on the proposed CBDC roadmap. As part of its plans, the central bank published a preliminary report detailing its CBDC thesis. Explaining its motivation for creating a CBDC, the Bank of Thailand argued that the success of private stablecoins poses risks to “monetary sovereignty and financial stability.” Indeed, back in March, Thailand’s apex bank deemed Thai Baht Digital …

Thailand’s Securities and Exchange Commission has clarified its guidelines to stipulate that those trading cryptocurrencies in the country should have some foundational knowledge. In a Facebook Live video from the Thai SEC today, secretary-general Ruenvadee Suwanmongkol said the regulatory body’s proposed guidelines now say that people interested in investing in digital assets must have previous experience in crypto trading. She added that those new to the market should attend a cryptocurrency trading training course or pass a test to prove their knowledge. Suwanmongkol said that the commission was organizing a free training course called Crypto 101 for investors who have …

Despite grand visions of enabling farmers in Vietnam access to the world of global finance via Decentralized Finance, emerging markets could represent as little 10% of visitors engaging with the top DeFi DApps. Proponents have long hoped crypto and DeFi would allow citizens around the world a means to circumvent the barriers created by economic underdevelopment, however the data suggest users from the world’s largest economies dominate the DeFi rankings by online traffic. A new report from The Defiant examines the top five geographical sources of traffic for the 10 largest DeFi platforms by Total Value Locked in February, with …

The Bank of Thailand, or BoT, is upping its game on the stablecoin front. This week, the institution warned citizens that Thai Baht Digital (THT), a baht-pegged stablecoin issued by the South Korean firm Terra, has no legal assurances or protection and violates the country's currency act. According to a report published on Friday, central bank Assistant Governor Siritida Panomwon Na Ayudhya told a briefing that the BoT is taking into consideration opinions from market regulators and participants before introducing its measures. The plans are to regulate asset-backed and foreign currency-backed stablecoins and algorithmic stablecoins, but not decentralized cryptocurrencies such …

The Bank of Thailand has issued a stern warning against a privately issued stablecoin pegged to the national currency, the Thai Baht. According to a Bangkok Post report on March 18, the central bank has told citizens that Thai Baht Digital (THT) has no legal assurances or protection and that users could be at risk of cyber theft or money laundering Citing a sixty-year-old law, the central bank's assistant governor of the legal group, Pruettipong Srimachand, stated that any activities involving the stablecoin are considered illegal: “The creation, issuance, usage or circulation of any material or token for money is …

Thailand currently lays claim to one of the more regulated crypto trading markets in the world, with exchanges having to adhere to strict regulatory standards. For example, at the start of the year, Bitkub, the country’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, was shut down by regulators after the trading platform faced a series of lengthy service outages. Despite these seemingly stringent conditions, the country’s crypto market has continued to thrive. That being said, a tipping point came recently when Thailand’s Securities and Exchange Commission released a statement that it plans to enact a 1-million-baht (about $33,000) annual income minimum requirement for crypto …

Just last month, SCB 10X — the venture arm of Siam Commercial Bank — had announced its new $50 million fund dedicated to investments in global blockchain, decentralized finance and digital asset startups. The banking institution is Thailand's oldest bank, established by royal charter back in 1907, and its latest forays into blockchain via SCB 10X are already underway. According to a report on March 5, SCB 10X is a contributor to the recent $80 million Series C raised by Anchorage, a crypto custodian and digital asset platform that received the United States' first federal digital asset banking charter at …

Major Cineplex Group, the largest operator of movie theaters in Thailand, has reportedly enabled some of its customers to buy tickets with cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC). According to a Thursday report by local news agency Siam Rath, Major Cineplex has announced the launch of its cryptocurrency payment pilot project in a move to support innovation and new technologies. In order to unlock the new payment option, the company has partnered with local crypto exchange Zipmex and lo digital payment startup RapidZ. Major Cineplex debuted the new feature at Bangkok’s Major Cineplex Ratchayothin movie theater on March 4, allowing customers to …

Thailand’s Securities and Exchange Commission has walked back previous plans to enact a 1 million baht (about $33,000) minimum annual income requirement for crypto investment in the country. According to a report by the Bangkok Post on Tuesday, the commission has clarified that the previous draft document was published to gauge investor sentiment. The Thai SEC's backtracking comes amid outrage from crypto stakeholders in the country who bemoaned the proposed rule, saying that it would exclude low- and middle-income earners from the cryptocurrency market. Clarifying the commission’s position on the matter, Ruenvadee Suwanmongkol, secretary-general of the Thai SEC, stated: “I …