Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin on Friday said he will reveal the source of funding for the 10,000-baht digital wallet scheme in the next two weeks.
The 10,000-baht digital currency handout is the flagship policy of the Pheu Thai-led coalition government.
All Thai citizens aged 16 and above are eligible to receive the digital wallet and can only spend the handout at local shops and businesses within four kilometres of a recipient's registered address, in a bid to stimulate local economies.
However, the policy is raising questions among many people wondering where the money to fund the scheme is coming from.
Asked if it was designed to favour large retailers, Mr Srettha said it would not have much benefit for them as large department stores were not widely operating in the provinces.
"Stimulation of the economy will not happen immediately the day the digital wallet is launched as we need to increase production capacity first," he told The Standard, an online media.
"In two weeks, I will reveal the source of funding as my talks with finance officials reveal that more than 200 billion baht will be added to the state finances," said Mr Srettha.
Asked what he would do if any problems emerge, Mr Srettha said there would not be any corruption as the money will be sent to people directly.
"The money will be handed over to people using blockchain technology through Krungthai Bank only," he added.
In a Facebook post, Somchai Jitsuchon, research director for inclusive development at the Thailand Development Research Institute (TDRI), disagreed with the digital currency handout, saying there were many better policies cut because of it.
This policy will lead to long-term opportunity costs and hurt fiscal discipline, Mr Somchai posted.
Meanwhile, Somchai Srisutthiyakorn, a former election commissioner and a House committee member vetting the 2023 budget, asked people to keep an eye on the 2024 expenditure budget.
Mr Somchai pointed to estimated income for 2024 that jumped 11.9%, while in previous years it only rose 3.2% on average.
In addition, outstanding public debt is estimated at 11.2 trillion baht, calculated at 62.97% of GDP.
But the figure for next year was seen rising to 12 trillion baht, or 64% of GDP.