Bank of Thailand targets illegal loan apps for removal
The Bank of Thailand (BoT) has identified 10 mobile applications offering personal loans illegally and is taking steps to have them removed from the App Store and Google Play Store.
Pirajit Padmasuta, the central bank’s senior director for financial consumer protection and supervision of financial service providers, stated that the regulator initially reported the 10 verified illegal apps, including Fineasy and Happy Loan, to the Personal Data Protection Committee (PDPC) under the Digital Economy and Society (DES) Ministry.
An official report is expected to be submitted to the DES Ministry this week. This will involve collaboration with regulatory agencies to request Google Play Store to remove these illegal apps.
Recently, the PDPC provided a list of 11 suspicious mobile apps from Google Play Store to the central bank to verify if they offered personal loans without proper registration. Upon review, only one of the apps was found to be operating legally.
Initially, two allegedly unlicenced personal loan apps were discovered pre-installed on some Chinese mobile devices, specifically Oppo and its subsidiary Realme.
Two apps are linked to Fineasy, while another third-party lending app is known as Happy Loan in English.
Pirajit added that the central bank is monitoring other suspicious apps beyond the 10 already identified, classifying them into unauthorised lending apps and data-stealing apps.
“The central bank continues to monitor fraudulent apps to prevent financial scams, especially amid rising cyber-risks.”
Regarding Fineasy and Happy Loan, 40 people have filed complaints against Oppo, Realme, and their distributors, alleging that the apps operated illegally and collected personal data in violation of the Personal Data Protection Act.
These complaints will be reviewed by an expert committee to consider potential fines.
The Thailand Consumers Council initially highlighted concerns about these lending apps, prompting discussions with the Electronic Transactions Development Agency, the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission, and the PDPC.
The council reported that Fineasy was pre-installed on Oppo and Realme devices and could not be removed as it was embedded in the operating system.
The app was reportedly capable of sending loan invitations and accessing users’ personal data, including contact lists and phone numbers, reported Bangkok Post.
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