Thailand Proposes 5M Baht Daily Stablecoin Transfer Caps

Thailand's Securities and Exchange Commission has proposed daily caps of 5 million baht (about $145,000) on stablecoin deposits and withdrawals per customer at each regulated digital asset operator, according to its Nov. 12 announcement. The limits apply separately to incoming and outgoing transfers, and public comments on the draft rules remain open until Nov. 26, 2026.

The regulator says the draft aims to prevent money laundering, cybercrime and the use of digital assets to bypass international money transfer rules. It builds on a September consultation, with earlier feedback incorporated into the proposed notification. Transfer values would also need to match each customer's income and financial position.

What qualifies for an exemption?

Several categories would escape the daily cap, provided counterparties comply with the Travel Rule:

• Customers moving stablecoins between their own accounts at SEC-supervised operators
• Digital asset operators transferring stablecoins for business purposes through accounts in their own names
• Bank of Thailand-supervised businesses with specific approval to use stablecoins
• Market makers providing stablecoin-baht liquidity, including transfers through regulated operators
• Qualifying subscriptions and refunds for SEC-approved digital token offerings

For token offerings, portals must have a mechanism to return payments to customers' accounts at regulated operators if a subscription fails. Repayments of invested capital and returns from holding digital tokens also fall under the exemption.

How would wallet checks work?

Operators would have to verify that a deposit's sending account or wallet belongs to the customer receiving the funds. Withdrawals would need to reach a wallet verified as belonging to that same customer. Sending funds to another person's wallet, or receiving them from one through an operator, would be prohibited.

Customer profiling and screening would accompany the ownership checks. Operators would use blockchain analytics to trace asset movements, detect connections with high-risk or watchlisted wallets, and screen for mule accounts and people linked to potentially illegal transactions.

Scrutiny of stablecoin flows predates this draft. In July, the Bank of Thailand and the SEC began examining high-value stablecoin transactions, with local reporting citing concerns about unusual USDT activity and transfers potentially bypassing financial reporting requirements. The regulator's September Travel Rule proposal addressed collecting, verifying and retaining information connected with crypto transfers.

What do exchanges and brokers face?

Exchanges would have to publish market makers' names and identify the assets for which they provide liquidity. Their duties include screening, monitoring and reviewing market makers to establish where their digital assets come from and the purposes behind their transactions.

Brokers would be prohibited from using liquidity providers for stablecoin-baht pairs. For other services, providers would need anti-money laundering controls, regulatory oversight and acceptable asset-safeguarding arrangements. Providers could not be based in jurisdictions that lack measures or implementation of Financial Action Task Force recommendations. Brokers would disclose providers' names and conflicts of interest, and monitor their funding sources and transaction activity. Similar screening would apply to the source exchanges brokers use, which must be supervised by a competent regulatory authority.

For brokers and dealers offering off-platform services, the proposed minimum transaction size is 3 million baht. Firms would publish trading prices on their websites so customers can check them. Brokers could not arrange off-platform trades directly between customers, though they could route customer orders to exchanges in Thailand or overseas.

What happens next?

The SEC's draft would let it order operators to correct failures in collecting or disclosing required information within a specified period. Thailand is also participating in cross-border settlement work through Singapore's BLOOM initiative, which the Bank of Thailand joined in October alongside Malaysia's central bank, with Circle and Coinbase among existing participants. Interested parties can submit comments through the SEC website, Thailand's Legal Hub or designated consultation email addresses before the Nov. 26 cutoff.