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The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has launched an 18-month sandbox, TouristDigiPay, allowing visitors to convert digital assets into Thai baht for spending as e-money, linking regulated asset operators and e-money providers.
The project, jointly run by the SEC, the Ministry of Finance, the Anti-Money Laundering Office (AMLO) and the Ministry of Tourism and Sports, is open to SEC-regulated business operators and e-money service providers and will last for 18 months, the SEC said on August 18.
Tourists will be able to use their smartphones to make payments at merchants across Thailand, including both large retailers and small vendors.
The scheme will not allow digital assets to be used directly as a means of payment for goods and services. Instead, merchants will be paid in Thai baht.
Upon arrival in Thailand, tourists will open an account with a digital asset (DA) operator and a tourist wallet with an e-money service provider. They will then transfer their DA into the wallet and sell them, receiving Thai baht. At that point, they can use their smartphone to pay for goods and services in the local currency.
Pornanong Budsaratragoon, the SEC’s secretary-general, said the TouristDigiPay project builds on Thailand’s existing payments ecosystem, which integrates the DA trading system regulated by the SEC with the e-money system regulated by the Bank of Thailand (BOT).
“The project includes appropriate risk management measures and follows know-your-customer (KYC) and customer due diligence (CDD) procedures in accordance with the standards set by the AMLO and other relevant authorities,” Budsaratragoon said.
“These procedures apply to both DA business operators and e-money service providers.”
As part of the scheme, which the SEC expects to attract foreign capital inflows and boost the Thai economy, the regulator is revising regulations and has opened a pre-consultation phase for businesses to prepare for and discuss the scheme.
The TouristDigiPay sandbox is expected to launch in the fourth quarter of 2025. Once it concludes, it will be followed by an evaluation of its effectiveness, which will inform further development and expansion of the initiative, the SEC said.
The sandbox will be closely watched by other countries as cryptocurrencies and digital assets move into the financial mainstream.
It will also reinforce Thailand’s reputation as a country taking a leading role in digital innovation.
Tourism downturn
Thai officials will also be hoping that the scheme can help reverse the sharp downturn in Chinese tourists visiting the country.
Thailand’s heavily tourism-dependent economy has been hit by fears of scams and high online crime rates.
Vixio analyst Prasad Thandapani said: “The introduction of this scheme proves once again that the immovable object that was Thailand’s stance on crypto payments can be shifted by the unstoppable force of Chinese tourist spending power.”
He added: “The question, however, remains as to which cryptocurrencies tourists will actually be able to convert to Thai baht under the initiative. Indeed, crypto enthusiasts may yet be disappointed if only select currencies, such as the digital yuan or other government-backed stablecoins, end up making the cut.”
The DigiPay sandbox is an example of regulators adopting innovative technologies to regain the initiative from tech-savvy criminals.
Innovation together with enforcement
As covered by Vixio, Thailand has been stepping up its enforcement efforts against online crime.
As of June 30, 2025, authorities had reported 65,841 arrests in technology-related crime cases, including 27,711 linked to online gambling.
A further 7,455 cases involved mule accounts or SIM cards used to facilitate criminal activity.
In April, the Royal Decree on Digital Assets came into force, allowing Thai authorities to close unauthorised foreign asset business platforms swiftly.
The decree, which was enacted immediately and not after the customary 30-day pause, aims to clamp down on foreign-initiated cybercrime and money muling, both of which have become problems across the ASEAN region.
