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Thailand’s Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has announced that Circle’s USDC and Tether’s USDT have become the first stablecoins to be approved for investment purposes.
Last week, the SEC added USDC and USDT to its list of crypto-assets that are approved for use as base trading pairs on regulated digital asset exchanges.
The move means that these exchanges can offer trading pairs between USDC, USDT and any other of the agency's approved crypto-assets, namely Bitcoin, Ethereum, Ripple’s XRP and Stellar’s XLM.
Any crypto-assets that are being used in the Bank of Thailand‘s (BOT) Programmable Payment Sandbox are also automatically added to the list of approved crypto-assets.
In addition, SEC-approved crypto-assets can be used to receive payments from investors during regulated initial coin offerings (ICOs), when new tokens are issued to the public for the first time.
The updated regulations, which come into effect on March 16, 2025, aim to enhance liquidity and flexibility in Thailand's digital asset sector.
The SEC had previously sought public feedback on the changes, which were finalised in February 2025 with widespread industry support.
Paolo Ardoino, CEO of Tether, welcomed the SEC’s announcement, noting that USDT already accounts for around 40 percent of crypto trading volume in Thailand.
“We highly value the Thai market and are continuously exploring ways to enhance our services and offerings,” he said.
“We are committed to supporting the long-term success and adoption of stablecoins in Thailand, and look forward to contributing to the growth of the country’s digital asset ecosystem.”
