Thailand's Financial Regulator Unveils $148K Daily Limits for Stablecoin Transactions
The Securities and Exchange Commission of Thailand plans to implement individual daily transaction limits for stablecoin deposits and withdrawals while mandating users operate through their own wallets.
The securities watchdog in Thailand has put forward a proposal to impose daily transaction caps of 5 million baht ($148,000) on both stablecoin deposits and withdrawals for individual customers utilizing regulated cryptocurrency service providers.
According to a Thursday statement from Thailand's Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the proposed restriction would be enforced independently for both deposit and withdrawal activities at each regulated operator. The regulatory body explained that these new regulations are designed to prevent money laundering activities, combat cybercrime, and stop efforts to circumvent regulations governing cross-border monetary transfers.
Under the proposed draft regulations, customers would be prohibited from transferring stablecoins to or from wallets belonging to third parties. Licensed operators would be obligated to authenticate that customers maintain ownership of the accounts or digital wallets they utilize for conducting deposit and withdrawal transactions.
Licensed operators would need to adhere to the Travel Rule, a requirement that mandates cryptocurrency service providers to gather and exchange information regarding transfers, and employ blockchain analytics tools to detect wallets associated with suspicious or questionable activity.
According to the proposed draft regulations, cryptocurrency exchanges would be required to disclose the identities of their market makers and specify which digital assets they provide liquidity for. Cryptocurrency brokers would face restrictions preventing them from utilizing liquidity providers for trading pairs involving stablecoins and the Thai baht. Additionally, specific types of off-platform transactions would need to meet a minimum threshold of 3 million baht.
These draft regulations come after a consultation period in September during which the SEC put forward proposals for limitations on stablecoin transfers alongside enhanced regulatory supervision of cryptocurrency operators.