Thailand

Five years after Thai Airways International Pcl filed for bankruptcy protection, the state-controlled carrier’s court-appointed debt administrator Piyasvasti Amranand is planning an aggressive international expansion, Bloomberg News reported. Called out of semi-retirement in 2020 by Thailand’s then-Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-Ocha, Piyasvasti was asked to take the controls of the airline and devise a rescue after the carrier had posted losses every year from 2013.

The Securities and Exchange Commission of Thailand (SEC) is set to introduce a new trading platform based on distributed ledger technology (DLT) that will enable securities firms to trade digital tokens, CoinMarketCap.com reported. This initiative aims to enhance the efficiency of the capital market by promoting an electronic securities ecosystem. Jomkwan Kongsakul, the deputy secretary-general of the Thai SEC, stated that the demand for token investments is increasing.

Thailand transferred about US$890 million to its senior citizens on Monday (Jan 27), part of a government programme to tackle the high cost of living and stimulate the nations’ sluggish economy, Bloomberg News reported. More than 3 million senior citizens were given 10,000 baht each (S$399), and the dole out will boost the country’s US$500 billion economy, Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra said. The government will continue the cash stimulus programme, she said without elaborating.

Thailand’s domestic automobile sales slumped to the lowest in 15 years, denting its reputation as the “Detroit of Asia,” as demand was squeezed by stricter bank-loan approvals and high household debt, Bloomberg News reported. Domestic sales declined 26% to 572,675 units last year, a figure not seen since 2009, Surapong Paisitpattanapong, spokesman of the automobile industry group at the Federation of Thai Industries, told a briefing Tuesday. Sales dropped 21% in December from a year earlier to 54,016 units.

Thailand may permit Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETF) to list on local exchanges for the first time as the country vies to nurture a digital-assets hub, Bloomberg News reported. The securities and exchange commission is considering allowing individuals and institutions to invest in local Bitcoin ETFs, secretary-general Pornanong Budsaratragoon said. Thailand’s One Asset Management launched a fund-of-funds offering exposure to overseas Bitcoin ETFs in June 2024, but the country hasn’t yet given the green light to vehicles that invest directly in the original cryptocurrency.

Thailand’s central bank held its benchmark interest rate steady in a widely expected move as inflation remains low and the economy has yet to show firm signs of recovery, the Wall Street Journal reported. With the Thai economy facing headwinds from intensified external competition and higher uncertainty, the Bank of Thailand said Wednesday that its policy committee voted unanimously to maintain its policy rate at 2.25%. Seven economists polled by The Wall Street Journal had expected the central bank to stand pat.

Thailand unveiled a fresh set of debt-relief measures to cover millions of retail borrowers and small businesses struggling to repay loans, the latest bid by authorities to tackle the highest level of household debt in Southeast Asia, Bloomberg News reported.

Thailand's banking system has large excess liquidity and the central bank has not tightened its lending supervision, an assistant governor said on Monday, reflecting banks' reluctance to lend, Reuters reported. Banks' lending decisions will depend on debtors' ability to repay debts, Sakkapop Panyanukul said in an article, opens new tab published on the Bank of Thailand's website. The banking system has had a lot of excess liquidity over the past 10 years, as reflected by deposits and investments of commercial banks at the BOT in the past, he said.

Thailand is working on a raft of fresh fiscal measures to sustain an economic recovery, foster new foreign investment and lower the near-record household debt, Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra’s top aide said, Bloomberg News reported. The economic stimulus panel chaired by the premier is set to consider the second phase of a cash handout plan and other steps at a meeting next week, according to Paetongtarn’s Secretary-General Prommin Lertsuridej. Easier rules for long-term land leasing and credit restructuring led by government banks are also on the anvil, he said.