Key takeaways:
- Thailand’s SEC has apparently modified regulations governing the establishment of private funds that invest in spot Bitcoin ETFs sold on American markets.
- Due to the substantial risk involved with Bitcoin ETPs, only accredited investors will be allowed to be exposed to them, according to SEC secretary-general.
Thailand’s Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has apparently modified regulations governing the establishment of private funds that invest in spot Bitcoin Exchange Traded Funds (ETF) sold on American markets.
These private Bitcoin ETF funds, however, would only be accessible to institutional investors and “ultra-high-net-worth individuals,” the Bangkok Post reported on March 12.
The SEC Act limits asset managers to offering trading of securities-classified assets; prior laws covering the investments of asset management firms did not extend to digital asset ETFs.
That being said, shares of spot Bitcoin ETFs were no longer considered cryptocurrency assets under Thai regulations but rather securities when the US securities authority legalized them in January.
Due to the substantial risk involved with Bitcoin ETPs, only accredited investors will be allowed to be exposed to them, according to SEC secretary-general Pornanong Budsaratragoon. As said to the Post:
“Asset management firms asked the SEC for them to have exposure in digital assets, especially Bitcoin and spot Bitcoin ETFs, but we need to consider carefully whether to allow asset management firms to invest in digital assets directly due to the high risk,”
According to reports, the SEC for Thailand declared in January that asset management companies would not be permitted to introduce their own spot Bitcoin ETFs in the nation.
The possibility of ordinary investors being exposed to spot Bitcoin ETFs has been excluded from the most recent regulations, though. In Thailand, retail cryptocurrency trading is still common, but its use is still limited.
The government forbade the use of digital assets for payments in March 2022, and in July 2023 the SEC forbade the use of cryptocurrencies for lending and investing.
However, in January, the SEC relaxed its ban on ordinary investors buying digital tokens linked to infrastructure or real estate projects. According to CoinGecko, Bitkub, the biggest cryptocurrency exchange in the Kingdom, has a daily volume of about $155 million and offers 107 pairs.
Furthermore, Binance launched a new exchange in Thailand in January, but only Thai citizens can use it.
