Bank of Thailand
- Thailand News
Bank of Thailand concerned with banks trading in digital assets
The Bank of Thailand said they don’t want commercial banks to directly trade in cryptocurrency and digital assets due to their extreme volatility. Thai lenders have been investing more and more in digital asset exchanges in Thailand with several banks making deals in the digital currency space. Siam Commerical Bank recently purchased a 51% share of Bitkub for 17.85 billion…
- Economy News
Bank of Thailand plans real-world test of digital currency in 2022
The Bank of Thailand recently announced plans to do some real-world testing of digital currency in the near future as the popularity of cryptocurrency continues to grow. They plan to test their Central Bank Digital Currency in a real-world environment sometime in the second quarter of 2022. The BOT has been studying the CBDC since 2018 and is aware that…
- Crime News
Man blames 50 million baht of withdrawals on adopted daughter
A 77 year old businessman in Phitsanulok discovered that 50 million baht was missing from his bank account and has accused his adopted daughter of stealing it. The money is claimed to have disappeared from 6 bank accounts without the man’s knowledge and he has now asked the bank for detailed statements to identify when and how the money was…
- Covid-19 News
Survey shows nearly half of Thai businesses expect return to normality in early 2022
A survey carried out by the Bank of Thailand shows that nearly half of Thai businesses expect life to return to normal during the first quarter of 2022. According to a Bangkok Post report, businesses of all sizes were interviewed between July 1 – 22 as part of the business sentiment index. The findings show that 45% expect people to…
- Economy News
GDP forecast dropped to 1-2% with best, middle and worst case scenarios
Mass vaccination will be the key stop the slump in economic growth after the Bank of Thailand revised their 2021 GDP forecast to between 1 – 2%. They had previously estimated a 3% growth in the gross domestic product but are now creating tiered predictions of a base level, worse situation, and a worst-case scenario, according to the Bank of…
- Economy News
Thai industry leaders warn economy on brink of collapse
Thai industry leaders are warning that if tourists don’t return soon, the economy will soon collapse with daunting consequences. And, as the Covid-19 vaccination programme is slow to take off, the window is closing for this year to make any kind of substantial recovery through reopening the country. Just this week, an opposition MP drew the government’s attention to the…
- Economy News
Covid-19 resurgence, weak labour market, threats to economic recovery – Bank of Thailand
A director at the Bank of Thailand’s economic and policy department says the resurgence in Covid-19, coupled with a fragile labour market, poses a threat to the country’s economic recovery. Chayawadee Chai-Anant says the reintroduction of strict lockdowns in many other countries also poses a risk. She says the full impact will depend on the rate of new infections in…
- Economy News
Gold sales go up as Thais sell jewelry to pay for routine expenses
With job losses and pay cuts brought on by the pandemic, many Thais are lining up to sell their gold to bring in some cash, like 22 year old Suvirat Namvicha, an office worker in Bangkok who had her overtime expenses cut. Survirat, who is also pregnant, says she needed to sell a gold necklace to pay for her medical bills.…
- Thailand News
Thailand News Today | Dinosaurs in BKK, BOT tackles Baht, Special K isn’t special | November 23
Start of the week, a busy day of news around Thailand with Tim Newton. Bank of Thailand takes action to curb Thai baht’s strength The Bank of Thailand is moving forward measures, originally meant to begin early 2021, but most of which will now take effect from end of this month. The end result is that the new rules will…
- Business News
Bank of Thailand takes action to curb Thai baht’s strength
The Bank of Thailand has moved forward measures, originally meant to begin early 2021, but most of which will now take effect from end of this month. The end result is that the new rules will make it easier for Thais to shuffle money overseas and invest in foreign assets. It will also make is easier for Thai citizens to…
- Economy News
Inequality likely after economic recovery – Bank of Thailand governor
It’s expected to take at least 2 years for Thailand’s economy to recover, but once it does, inequality is likely to become a top concern, according to the Bank of Thailand governor Sethaput Suthiwart-Narueput. “It is expected to take at least two years before the Thai economy returns to its pre-pandemic levels in terms of GDP… Even when the economy…
- Economy News
“Protests could affect the economy” – Bank of Thailand
The ongoing political protests could have a negative impact on Thailand’s already crippled economy by weakening domestic consumption and tourism even more, according to the Bank of Thailand. The bank’s newly appointed governor Settaput Suthiwart-Narueput, who started this month, says they need to keep a close watch on the situation. “Basically, the political factor is one of the uncertainties… It…
- Tourism News
Bank of Thailand issues stark warning over ongoing ban on foreign tourists
The Bank of Thailand has issued a sombre warning that the ongoing ban on foreign tourists returning to Thailand may have an even worse impact next year. Don Nakornthab, from the BOT’s economic and policy department, says if international tourists are not allowed back into the country soon, Thailand’s tourism industry will face even bigger threats next year. A report…
- Covid-19 News
Thai economy won’t need a bailout from the IMF
The Thai economy won’t need a bailout from the International Monetary Fund, although the GDP growth for 2020 may end up being the lowest in the region. The Governor of the Bank of Thailand, Veerathai Santipraphob says the Thai economy is “strong enough”. Speaking at a seminar entitled “Post-Covid Economic Direction”, Veerathai noted that, although Thailand has managed to control…
- Covid-19 News
HM the King approves 1.9 trillion baht stimulus for Thailand
A royal endorsement was published in Thailand’s Royal Gazette yesterday saying, “his Majesty the King has approved new stimulus measures and laws to enforce spending worth 1.9 trillion baht, to lessen the impact of the coronavirus (Covid-19) on the economy”. This will take effect immediately according to the Royal Gazette. Read more about the 1.9 trillion baht stems package HERE. The…
- Covid-19 News
Thai banks cut lending rates to ease Covid-19 fallout
Today the Bank of Thailand, in a joint effort with the Financial Institutions Development Fund, eased debt repayment requirements, in bid to help people affected by the Covid-19 virus who are unable to pay monthly minimums. Kasikornbank (KBank) and Siam Commercial Bank (SCB) are also planning to reduce their prime lending rates by 40 basis points. The KBank co-president Predee Daochai…
- Covid-19 News
Thai banks report they can handle the impacts of the virus
As the Covid-19 coronavirus continues to spread in Thailand, authorities have temporarily shut off shopping malls, entertainment and sporting venues while allowing food stalls and restaurants to open, but only for take-out and delivery services. The measures have led to social disruption, unemployment, leave without pay and salary cuts. However, a senior official at the Bank of Thailand reports, “Thailand’s…
- Economy News
BOT predicts 5.3% contraction in Thai economy for 2020
Even the Thai economy, which was still maintaining respectable growth before January, is now spluttering under the siege of the Covid-19 virus. Now the Bank of Thailand has crunched some numbers and believes the Thai economy will sharply contract by 5.3% this year as the virus continues to weigh on global financial markets, the local economy and people. GDP growth…
- Covid-19 News
Banks stay open during state of emergency
The good news is you can still get to your money, most branches will stay open (for now) and ATMs will stocked with cash. The Bank of Thailand and other financial institutions say that they will keep as many branches open as possible to ensure businesses can continue to operate during the Covid-19 emergency. BoT, the Thai Bankers’ Association, the…
- World News
US Treasury mulls putting Thailand on its ‘watchlist’ as a currency manipulator
Thailand’s trade surplus with the US has now exceeded US$20 billion. Bloomberg reports that this could trigger the Thai currency to be added to the US Treasury’s watchlist of “currency manipulators”. According to US Census Bureau data, the surplus reached US$20.05 billion in the 12 months up to the end of November 2019. That exceeds a $20 billion upper limit…
- Technology News
Thai Central Bank ‘sandboxing’ biometrics to open a saving account
The Bank of Thailand’s assistant governor for payment systems policy and financial technology group, Siritida Panomwan, says that 10 commercial banks and non-bank financial institutes were participating in the BoT’s ‘sandbox’ project to test-run biometric technology known as e-kyc (“electronic know your customer”, not a special lubricant gel) to electronically verify the identity of customers. “So far none of the…
- Economy News
Central Bank of Thailand voices concern over impact of economic slowdown
PHOTO: Thai PBS World The Bank of Thailand has expressed concern about the country’s rising household debt as a result of the sluggish economy. The bank’s assistant governor Titanun Mallikamas was speaking on Monday, in response to the National Economic and Social Development Council raising the matter at a press conference. “We are closely monitoring household debts, as Thai families…
- Business News
Thai baht may need another ‘haircut’ by the Bank of Thailand before the end of 2019
Wednesday’s rate cut by the Bank of Thailand has not succeeded in reining in the surging baht, raising the prospect of another interest rate cut by 0.25 of a percentage point before the year-end. While the central bank’s statement on the policy rate reduction didn’t mention the strength of the baht, economists suspect the baht’s strength and its impact on…
- Bangkok News
Another Thai interest rate hike predicted for next year
by Phuwit Limviphuwat and Wichit Chaitrong We’ve just had one .25 basis point interest rise to the base rate. Now there’s already talk of another in 2019 which will start to affect consumer spending, especially mortgage holders. Siam Commercial Bank (SCB) and Phatra Securities are predicting that the Bank of Thailand (BOT) is likely to implement a modest interest rate…
