November announcement set for digital asset licences

November announcement set for digital asset licences

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) expects to announce the issuance of authorised licences for businesses involved with digital asset operations in November.

Six digital asset exchanges have applied to seek operating licences, while there are two digital asset dealers and three initial coin offering (ICO) portals applying for licences to legally operate their businesses, said SEC secretary-general Rapee Sucharitakul.

"We expect that the SEC's board of directors will approve the qualifications and other conditions at the next meeting scheduled in October and can forward [the approval] to the Finance minister soon," Mr Rapee said.

SEC deputy secretary-general Tipsuda Thavaramara said that at least one ICO portal can be announced in November after completion of the assessment process.

But it is possible that some companies will fail to obtain the operating licences because they do not meet certain qualifications, such as the working system and management conditions, Mrs Tipsuda said.

"Some people misunderstand about the six digital asset exchanges whose operations the SEC has allowed to continue since they submitted their applications within 90 days after the royal decree on digital assets became effective," she said. "If they fail to meet the qualifications, they will have to stop their operations immediately."

Earlier, the SEC revealed the names of eight businesses seeking licences to operate digital asset businesses.

As the SEC is still assessing the applications, these businesses are allowed to operate because they submitted their requests within 90 days after the royal decree took effect on May 14.

The six businesses seeking licences to operate as digital asset exchanges are Bitcoin Co Ltd (bx.in.th); Bitkub Online Co Ltd (bitkub.com); Cash2Coins Co Ltd (cash2coins.com); Satang Corporation Co Ltd (tdax.com); Coin Asset Co Ltd (coinasset.co.th); and Southeast Asia Digital Exchange Co Ltd (seadex.io).

The two businesses seeking licences to operate as digital asset dealers are Coins TH Co (coins.co.th) and Digital Coin Co Ltd (thaiwm.com).

The royal decree on digital asset business went into effect on May 14. The new legislation was enacted to regulate digital asset offerings and businesses undertaking digital-asset-related activities.

Pursuant to the royal decree, digital assets cover cryptocurrencies, digital tokens and any other electronic data unit, as specified by the SEC.

The Finance Ministry has a mandate for businesses involved with digital asset trade to be registered companies in Thailand.

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