BANGKOK, THAILAND – Thailand announced sweeping plans to tighten control over opaque money flows by targeting online gold trading, large cash movements and cryptocurrency transactions.
Government unveils data-driven clampdown
Finance Minister Ekniti Nitithanprapas and Central Bank Governor Vitai Ratanakorn presented detailed plans in early January 2026 to close regulatory gaps in the financial sector. The measures focused on the largely unregulated gold trade, especially online transactions and large cash operations.
The government planned a digital data office to link financial information from tax authorities, the central bank and the securities regulator via an open programming interface. The system was intended to automatically flag suspicious patterns, such as large cash deposits converted into cryptocurrencies and then into gold, enabling authorities to trace such flows across products.
AI-powered monitoring without new bureaucracy
The planned data office was to use artificial intelligence and advanced algorithms to detect links between different financial products in real time and trigger alerts in case of unusual activity. According to the finance minister, no new authority would be created.
“Instead, existing data streams will be intelligently connected to close blind spots in supervision without creating additional bureaucracy.”
said Ekniti Nitithanprapas, finance minister.
Caps on online gold and currency exchange
The Finance Ministry was considering a daily cap for online gold trading of 100 to 200 million baht per person, Vitai said. At an exchange rate of about 31 baht to the US dollar, this corresponded to roughly 3.2 to 6.4 million dollars and was aimed at speculative trades where no physical gold changed hands.
On some days, online gold transactions accounted for 40 to 60 percent of Thailand’s total foreign exchange trading, Vitai noted, contributing to an appreciation of the baht and complicating monetary policy. Since early 2025, the baht had strengthened by about 9.4 percent against the US dollar, putting pressure on the country’s export-driven economy as Thai goods became more expensive abroad.
Tighter identification and reporting duties
Ekniti announced that strict identity verification would become mandatory for traders in the online gold business to end anonymity in financial dealings. Platform operators would have to maintain dedicated accounts and submit detailed trading reports.
The revenue department planned to pay particular attention to large gold transactions conducted via proprietary online platforms. People bringing cash or foreign currencies worth more than 200,000 US dollars into Thailand had already been required since late 2025 to declare these funds and provide evidence of origin and intended use.
Limits on cash exchange and digital wallets
The central bank intended to cap currency exchange at 800,000 baht per person per day, around 25,800 US dollars. Larger sums would have to be processed through regular banking channels with full documentation to prevent uncontrolled cash swaps.
Limits on digital wallets were also to be adjusted to reduce abuse while still meeting the needs of ordinary users. Regulators faced the challenge of balancing security and user-friendliness, warning that overly strict rules could hold back the digital economy and stifle innovation.
Revisiting eased gold import rules
Finance Ministry Secretary Lavaron Sangsnit said Thailand had previously relaxed gold import rules to support the domestic jewellery industry and improve its competitiveness. This liberalisation had created loopholes that now needed to be closed.
The tax authority was examining whether to reintroduce gold import duties to slow capital outflows. Any renewed tariffs would directly affect domestic gold prices but were intended to support currency stability in an economy that depended on a stable baht, especially for exports.
Central bank seeks stronger legal powers
Vitai argued that the central bank needed expanded legal authority to effectively supervise the gold trade, noting a current lack of clear responsibilities in this area. The Bank of Thailand was awaiting a formal change from the Finance Ministry.
Once this change was in place, the bank planned stricter oversight of major gold dealers, particularly for transactions with a noticeable impact on the foreign exchange market. The goal was to bring the gold sector more firmly under existing financial surveillance.
Travel Rule to trace crypto transfers
The securities regulator SEC was tasked with implementing the so-called Travel Rule for digital assets. Under this international standard, crypto service providers must collect information on the sender and recipient of transactions.
“We are working closely with the anti-money-laundering authority to track funds that have so far escaped supervision.”
said Pornanong Budsaratragoon, SEC secretary-general.
Implementation of the Travel Rule was expected in the first quarter of 2026, after which providers would have to fully document the origin and destination of crypto transfers. Linking this data to the new digital office was designed to make it harder to use cryptocurrencies as a bridge for moving grey money into the legal economy.
Grey money, booming gold flows and currency risks
Authorities described grey money as assets generated largely outside the tax system, often from online gambling or unregulated trade. Such funds had long sought entry into the legal system, with gold purchases in cash considered a discreet route due to minimal documentation requirements.
Industry representatives reported that the value of gold transactions doubled in 2025 to around 10 trillion baht compared with the previous year. The government saw a link between this surge and the appreciation of the baht, warning that large conversions of grey money into dollars or gold could distort the exchange rate and pose risks for an export-oriented economy.
Impact on residents, foreigners and small dealers
Authorities stressed that legal transfers via banks, such as pensions or savings, should not be directly affected, as controls targeted illegal flows and extreme speculation. Nevertheless, banks and gold traders were expected to ask more questions and demand documentation more frequently for larger transactions.
Spontaneous purchases of gold bars could become more complicated without the necessary paperwork, and cross-border transfers might face more stringent checks. Full documentation and patience would become more important for foreigners in Thailand carrying out sizeable financial operations.
Consolidation ahead in the gold sector
The government anticipated turbulent times for the gold industry, with market consolidation seen as likely because smaller dealers might struggle to meet the new compliance requirements. Over time, officials argued, a leaner market could produce a more stable and transparent financial centre.
Thailand was moving closer to international standards of financial supervision with its gold and data measures. The Finance Ministry aimed to present the detailed regulations for the gold trade by the end of January 2026, with technical implementation of the data office and inter-agency links to proceed step by step and first improvements expected in the first quarter of 2026.