Thailand requires in-person registration for cryptocurrency

Thailand has launched new regulations for anybody opening a cryptocurrency account that requires physical registration and forbids online setup. The Anti-Money Laundering Office created this rule that goes into effect in September 2021 in an effort to reduce money laundering, a practice that plagues crypto. People registering a cryptocurrency account in Thailand will be required to scan their Thai ID card and submit identifying documents in person.

The registration will involve a machine referred to as a “dip-chip” that has been used for gold traders in the past. The system essentially registers all people in the trading system and has been successful in the gold trading industry to manage customer relations and increase security.

Critics point to a violation of privacy, and a complication of registration and trade of crypto that will slow adoption and usage in Thailand. Others argue that the point of crypto was to create a decentralized digital system, something in-person centralized registration directly contradicts. Crypto accounts in Thailand have grown from 160,000 accounts last year to 700,000 this year, but the majority of accounts have been opened online so these new regulations are expected to dramatically slow the growth of Thai crypto.

Thailand is not alone and their push to add heavy regulation to avoid money laundering and other illegal activities via cryptocurrencies. Turkey recently joined countries like Bolivia, and India in imposing drastic regulation. In February, Nigeria banned the use of cryptocurrencies sparking huge outrage in Nigeria and around the world, as the country had been second only to the United States in cryptocurrency usage.

While crypto exchanges and related industries have been fortifying and expanding their systems to handle the huge influx of new cryptocurrency users, the new in-person regulations are expected to severely hamper the growth by creating a process so complicated that it drives away people curious about the emerging currencies.

SOURCE: Be In Crypto