Bangkok: The Bank of Thailand (BOT) is focused on upgrading technology and developing Thai payments, encouraging foreign tourists to exchange cryptocurrencies and spend baht domestically. Thais are proficient online, with 95 million PromptPay transfers per day.
According to Thai News Agency, Ms. Darunee Saeju, Assistant Governor of the Bank of Thailand, highlighted significant advancements in Thailand’s digital payment system over the past eight years during a discussion on the “Payment Directional Paper”. The developments have led to a 25-fold increase in mobile banking transactions, 95 million PromptPay transfers per day, a 12-fold increase in e-money transactions, a 33-fold increase in merchant QR code payments, and a 40% increase in card payments. Meanwhile, cash usage at branches and ATMs decreased by 34%, and check usage decreased by 43%, significantly reducing banknote production costs.
The Bank of Thailand is encouraging businesses to adopt the Promt BIZ system for inter-bank transfers, which will facilitate the banking sector’s access to data for loan approvals. Additionally, the Ministry of Finance and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) are piloting a program allowing foreign tourists to exchange cryptocurrencies for baht to spend at merchants and department stores. The BOT is supporting this initiative by monitoring e-money usage and requiring clear identity verification.
Mr. Napongthawat Potikit, Senior Director of the Payment Systems Policy Department, reported that the Bank of Thailand has conducted sandbox experiments enabling programmable payments based on Thai baht, blockchain-based transfers, and cross-network transfers. The initiative aims to address user needs and enhance payment system security. The BOT has also been testing the Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) to promote innovation over the next 3-5 years, addressing policy challenges such as Thailand’s high proportion of the informal economy, adapting to new technologies, and preventing fraud and illegal transactions.
Payment system development under the new Thai Payment System Development Direction includes expanding the current payment system by upgrading the PromptPay system with new innovations and services, upgrading the BAHTNET system to support future payment innovations, and preparing to support future payment innovations by promoting the application of Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) and tokenization technology. These efforts aim to prevent potential risks, including money laundering or fraud, and protect users while supporting service development with tokenized money for inter-party transfers or breakdown into smaller sizes.