Thailand will launch a program on Monday allowing foreign visitors to convert cryptocurrency into Thai baht for payments, as the government seeks to revive tourism following a decline in Chinese visitors.
The “TouristDigiPay” initiative will be announced at a press conference led by Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Pichai Chunhavajira, alongside officials from the Finance Ministry, Securities and Exchange Commission, Anti-Money Laundering Office, and Ministry of Tourism and Sports.
The Securities and Exchange Commission completed public consultation on using digital assets to support economic and tourism growth, with the feedback period ending August 13.
Under the program, foreign tourists must open accounts with both a digital asset business and an e-money provider regulated by the SEC and the Bank of Thailand, respectively.
The scheme operates within a regulatory sandbox to ensure oversight and prevent direct use of digital assets as payment methods.
Only foreign tourists temporarily staying in Thailand can access the service. Participants must complete Know Your Customer and customer due diligence checks according to Anti-Money Laundering Office criteria.
The service allows tourists to exchange digital assets for baht and make electronic payments through QR code scanning.
Naphongthawat Phothikit, senior director at the Bank of Thailand’s Payment Systems and Financial Technology Policy Department, said the central bank has developed a “Tourist Wallet” for foreign visitors.
The wallet facilitates QR code payments for tourists from countries without existing cross-border QR payment agreements.
The system initially functions as an e-money platform for currency conversion, with plans to link directly to foreign debit and credit cards.
Transaction limits aim to prevent money laundering. Merchants with card terminals face monthly spending limits of 500,000 baht per account.
Small merchants have 50,000 baht monthly limits. Transactions are prohibited at high-risk money laundering businesses under AMLO guidelines.
Tourists can withdraw funds only when closing accounts, not as cash based on account balances. The program targets tourism recovery after visitor numbers declined this year, particularly from China, Thailand’s largest source market before the pandemic.
Thailand received 28.1 million foreign visitors in 2019 before tourism collapsed during COVID-19. The government has implemented various stimulus measures to restore the sector’s contribution to the economy.