Thailand tightens gold and crypto rules to crack down on grey money

Thailand’s government has ordered a major tightening of regulations surrounding gold trading and crypto as a way to curb  “grey money” and illegal financial flows. 

Over the weekend, Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul and Finance Minister Ekniti Nitithanprapas met in a high-level meeting of the “Connect the Dots” sub-committee. Together, they laid out a plan to integrate national financial data and fix structural leaks that criminal groups are using to launder money.

The strategy entails the creation of a national Data Bureau. This will allow authorities to track suspicious transactions in real-time and develop comprehensive “risk profiles” for several financial activities.

Revenue Department considers a new “Specific Business Tax” 

The Prime Minister’s order is aimed directly at the gold trade. The Anti-Money Laundering Office (AMLO) has been advised to lower the amount of gold bar purchases that must be reported.

Previously, only transactions exceeding 2 million baht had to be reported. However, the new directive will create a new limit that will be significantly lower to prevent “smurfing”, the practice of splitting large sums into smaller amounts to evade detection.

The SEC also ordered strict enforcement of the “Travel Rule.” This international standard requires all crypto asset providers to identify both the originators and beneficiaries of wallet-to-wallet transfers.

PM Anutin stated, “Today, we are not only addressing modern digital threats but also ‘analogue’ financial crimes, […] Traditional criminal methods are constantly evolving to find new life. We must work as a single, integrated force to protect the public interest and the integrity of our financial system.”

Thailand weighs limits on gold speculation to protect the Baht

This operation is also a step-up effort to limit speculative gold trading because huge volumes of gold deals have helped push the Thai baht to unusually strong levels. Authorities aim to limit the amount of gold individuals can trade and tighten reporting requirements to prevent excessive gold-related currency flows from distorting the exchange rate and harming exports and tourism. 

The baht is hovering around its highest level since 2021. The Bank of Thailand governor Vitai Ratanakorn stated that they will integrate a cap on the amount of foreign currencies individuals can transact with money changers at 800,000 baht a day. “The baht’s recent abnormal strength is partly driven by gold transactions conducted in the local currency, particularly trading via Thai-baht-based applications,” Vitai said.

To ease the pressure on the baht, leading Thai bullion dealers, who account for about 90% of the market, have proposed to upgrade their online trading platforms to facilitate buying and selling in dollars within the next three to six months.

Last year, the baht gained 8%, making it the second-best performer in Asia. This was a result of the dollar’s weakness, and gold’s 65% rally to a series of record highs helped hide weak domestic economic factors.

Gold prices vs Thai Baht. Source: Bloomberg

Daily gold trading volumes in Thailand have at times exceeded those on the local stock exchange, prompting traders to transact unusually large amounts of US dollars. According to the central bank, at peak periods, gold-related deals accounted for 50%–60% of Thailand’s total dollar trading.

According to Kritcharat Hirunyasiri, chairman of MTS Gold Group, total gold trading was estimated at around 10 trillion baht last year, doubling from 2024. Thailand remained a net gold importer last year, importing 180 tons while exporting 110 tons, according to the Thai Gold Traders Association.

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