The Secretary-General said: "This aims to block access to these platforms, strengthen law enforcement, and prevent scammers from using such platforms to launder unlawfully obtained assets. This marks another step in combating cybercrime."

The pilot program partially conducted testing of the Retail CBDC’s end-to-end life cycle for real-value transactions, with industry participants acting as financial service providers, and whitelisted users and merchants.

The updated rules, published in the Royal Gazette on 16 January 2024, remove the 300,000 baht ($8,500) limit, allowing retail investors to invest "more freely in the real estate and infrastructure-backed digital token (REIT) market."

The warning that must be used is: “Cryptocurrencies are high risk. Please study and understand the risks of cryptocurrencies thoroughly, because you may lose the entire amount invested.” 

The warning message must be clearly visible, and the business operator must arrange for the users to give consent and acknowledge the risks before using the service.

The guidelines also prohibit service providers from using customer funds for lending or investment.

The guidelines come into effect on 31 July 2023.

The proposed regulation aims to provide greater protection to investors, reduce associated risks, and prevent a misunderstanding that deposit taking and lending services are under the same supervision as regulated digital asset businesses.