Thailand

Thai cryptocurrency exchange Zipmex said in a document dated July 27 that its solicitors in Singapore, Morgan Lewis Stamford LLC, filed five moratorium applications, or legal authorization to debtors to postpone payment, under Section 64 of Singapore’s Insolvency, Restructuring and Dissolution Act 2018 on behalf of the company, Cointelegraph.com reported. Zipmex seeks to protect itself against third party actions, claims, and proceedings for a period of six months while the filing is active.

At least four Thai insurance companies have gone bankrupt after suffering losses from selling low-cost COVID-19 policies, raising fears of a domino effect that could weigh on the country's non-life insurance sector, Nikkei Asia reported. Syn Mun Kong Insurance is looking to raise capital and find new partners to stay afloat as it navigates a court-supervised rehabilitation. "Some foreign investors have expressed interest in joining us. We are in talks," said a source close to deals that could affect Syn Mun Kong's ability to retain its business license.

Thai AirAsia X, the long-haul budget airline under the AirAsia group, said its application for bankruptcy protection was accepted by Thailand’s Central Bankruptcy Court, Forbes reported. "Thai AirAsia X has entered into rehabilitation at an appropriate time with tourism recovering and the nation reopening”, Patima Jeerapaet, chief executive of Thai AirAsia X said in a statement released on Thursday.

Syn Mun Kong Insurance (SMK) has filed for protection with the Central Bankruptcy Court after it failed to pay a whopping THB164 billion to 1.95 million people who purchased its Covid insurance, The Nation (Thailand) reported. SMK managing director Reungdej Dusdeesurapoj informed the Stock Exchange of Thailand that the company filed for bankruptcy protection on Tuesday in accordance with the decision of its board of directors.

Thailand's leading joint business group on Tuesday trimmed its economic growth forecast for this year to 2.5%-4.0% from a previous forecast of 2.5%-4.5% due to the impact of the Russia-Ukraine war on global growth and energy prices, Reuters reported. The inflation forecast was raised to 3.5%-5.5% this year from a previous projection of 2.0%-3.0%, the group, which includes representatives from industry, banking and commerce, said in a statement. It maintained its export growth outlook of 3.0%-5.0% this year.

Japan's Nippon Steel Corp. has completed its acquisition of majority stakes in two electric arc furnace steelmakers in Thailand, paying about $477 million in total, it said on Monday, Reuters reported. The company, Japan's biggest steelmaker, said in January that it will buy Thai steelmakers G Steel PCL and G J Steel PCL in a deal worth up to $763 million, seeking to cut its reliance on blast furnaces that use coking coal and emit carbon dioxide.

Thailand's economic activity in March came under pressure from rising coronavirus infections and higher inflation driven by increasing energy prices, after a recovery in the previous month, the central bank said on Thursday, Reuters reported. Overall business activity was steady in March, while the baht depreciated following an escalation of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the Bank of Thailand (BOT) said. Southeast Asia's second-largest economy should, however, remain on the recovery path, senior BOT director Chayawadee Chai-Anant told a news conference.

Thailand has issued rules to ban digital assets from being used to pay for goods and services from April 1, the market regulator said on Wednesday, Reuters reported. The move was in line with earlier discussions between the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Bank of Thailand (BOT) on a need to regulate such activity by digital asset business operators as it could impact the country's financial stability and overall economy, the SEC said in a statement.

Thailand’s unemployment rose to its highest level in more than 16 years after the worst wave of Covid-19 outbreak to hit the nation decimated jobs in the third quarter, Bloomberg News reported. The Southeast Asian nation had 870,000 unemployed people at the end of September, representing a 2.25% jobless rate, according to the National Economic and Social Development Council. It’s the worst showing since 2005 and is higher than the 1.89% posted in the second quarter, official data showed.