Cryptocurrency rules to be issued by end-June: SEC chief

Cryptocurrency rules to be issued by end-June: SEC chief

A customer pays for a meal at Lim Lao Ngow, a noodle shop in Siam Square One, with bitcoin on June 14, 2017. The shop is one of the few merchants in Thailand accepting crypto-currency as payment. (Photo by Pawat Laopaisarntaksin)
A customer pays for a meal at Lim Lao Ngow, a noodle shop in Siam Square One, with bitcoin on June 14, 2017. The shop is one of the few merchants in Thailand accepting crypto-currency as payment. (Photo by Pawat Laopaisarntaksin)

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) expects to issue regulations on cryptocurrencies and initial coin offerings by the end of June after holding a public hearing, the commission chief said on Tuesday.

Offerings of digital tokens will not be allowed until the regulations are announced, Rapee Sucharitakul, SEC secretary-general, told reporters.

The SEC has the authority to regulate digital assets, according to a decree which took effect on Monday. The decree requires sellers and operators of such assets to register with the SEC within 90 days.

The public hearing will take a 2-3 weeks because investments in digital tokens are complicated and carry high risks, Mr Rapee said.

The finance ministry will impose a 15% withholding tax on gains from digital tokens and cryptocurrency trade, Finance Minister Apisak Tantivorawong said in March.

There will also be a 7% value-added tax, but general investors will be exempted, he said.

The Bank of Thailand will wait for the SEC - the primary regulator - to announce other regulations before taking action, according to Assistant Bank of Thailand governor Chantavarn Sucharitakul.

In February, the central bank asked financial institutions not to get involved in cryptocurrency transactions for fear of possible problems.

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