Thailand Central Bank Tightens Oversight of Large Tether Trades to Curb Money Laundering
Summary
- Thailand’s central bank said it will step up oversight of large stablecoin transactions centered on Tether (USDT) to curb money laundering.
- The tighter rules will extend across cash transactions, foreign exchange, and gold trading, and cash deposits above 5 million baht will require source-of-funds declarations.
- About 40% of the roughly $26 million in average daily trading volume on Bitkub, Thailand’s largest exchange, comes from the USDT-Thai baht trading pair.
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Thailand’s central bank is stepping up surveillance of large transactions to curb money laundering and illicit fund flows involving stablecoins.
Cointelegraph reported on July 13 that the Bank of Thailand is working with the Thai Securities and Exchange Commission to audit large stablecoin transactions centered on Tether’s USDT, as well as cash and foreign-exchange deals.
Bank of Thailand Governor Vitai Ratanakorn told local outlet The Nation that the measures are not a short-term fix and that multiple strategies must be deployed on a continuing basis.
The move is aimed at eradicating Thailand’s “grey economy.” The central bank is targeting the circulation of suspicious funds in cash from illegal groups including scam call centers. Scam-related losses in Thailand reached 115 billion baht, or about $3.4 billion, in 2025 alone, while scam calls and text messages totaled about 173 million over the same period.
The crackdown extends beyond cash transactions to foreign exchange and gold trading. Cash deposits above 5 million baht, or about $150,000, now require disclosure of the source of funds. Transactions that exchange large-denomination banknotes for smaller bills without a clear business purpose will also be monitored.
Thailand allows virtual-asset trading, but the central bank prohibits the use of digital assets and stablecoins as a means of payment. Bitkub, the country’s largest exchange, records average daily trading volume of about $26 million. CoinGecko data show roughly 40% of that comes from the USDT-Thai baht trading pair.
Thai authorities froze 3 million bank accounts during a 2025 crackdown on accounts opened under borrowed or false identities. The sweep later sparked controversy after ordinary individuals and legitimate businesses were also caught up in the action.
