Category: The Bangkok Post

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has moved to tighten ‘travel rule’ requirements for digital asset businesses, requiring them to collect, verify and retain information on transfers in order to strengthen safeguards against money laundering and technology-related crime.

The rules are designed to give digital asset operators sufficient information to assess and manage money laundering risks, bringing Thailand’s framework closer to international standards set by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF).

The SEC said the requirements were developed in coordination with the Anti-Money Laundering Office (Amlo), as authorities step up cooperation between the public and private sectors to prevent and disrupt technology-related crime.

The Travel Rule is so named because it aims to to prevent illicit, anonymous or untraceable crypto transactions by allowing certain identifiable data to ‘travel’ with each transfer.

The new framework follows a resolution by a subcommittee responsible for linking financial information to improve the monitoring of suspicious transactions. The SEC and Amlo agreed to establish guidelines for digital asset operators, while Amlo prepares regulations under the anti-money laundering law.

Transfer checks

Under the new rules, digital asset businesses must establish policies and operating procedures for managing risks associated with the transfer and receipt of digital assets.

Operators also have to collect information on customers and their transaction counterparties before processing transfers. In addition, they must verify the identity and status of the counterparty virtual asset service provider, as well as any intermediary digital asset operator involved in the transfer route.

Additional checks apply when transactions involve self-hosted wallets, which are controlled directly by users rather than a third-party service provider. Operators must verify ownership or control of such wallets when sending or receiving digital assets.

For transfers involving two digital asset operators, the ordering operator must transmit information on both the sender and recipient together with the transfer instruction to the beneficiary operator receiving the order.

The requirements are intended to improve the traceability of digital asset transactions and give regulators and operators more tools to identify suspicious activity and prevent digital assets from being used as a channel for technology-related crime.

Five-year requirement

Digital asset businesses must retain transfer-related information for every transaction for at least five years. The records must be maintained in a format that allows regulators to access and inspect them immediately when required.

The new rules take effect on Feb 27, 2027, giving digital asset operators time to prepare their systems for data transmission, verification and transaction monitoring. The implementation period is intended to allow operators to upgrade internal processes and technology before the requirements become mandatory.

The SEC conducted public consultations on the principles for the rules in March and April, followed by consultation on the draft notification in June and July. The majority of stakeholders supported both the principles and the proposed notification.

SEC secretary-general Pornanong Budsaratragoon said the regulator was committed to preventing digital asset businesses from becoming conduits for money laundering and technology-related crime.

The updated Travel Rule would strengthen the ability to block technology-related crime, reduce the risk of digital asset services being used for money laundering and terrorist financing, and reinforce operators’ responsibility to monitor customer transactions in line with regulatory requirements, she noted.

Seven Thai airlines have joined to offer passengers free check-in of up to 10 kilogrammes of fresh fruit on domestic flights in a bid to boost revenue for local farmers and tourism.

The campaign, initiated under collaboration between the ministries of Transport and Commerce, started on Tuesday and will run until Aug 31 of next year.

The move aims to help farmers to distribute their produce during peak fruit harvest times, while also promoting the consumption of Thai fruits and supporting domestic tourism, according to Banjongjitt Angsusingh, adviser to the minister of commerce.

The airlines joining the project are Thai Airways, AirAsia, Bangkok Airways, Nok Air, Thai Lion Air, Thai VietJet Air and Ezy Airlines.

Throughout the period, retail spaces will be designated for farmers to sell seasonal fruits at airports nationwide, with 10kg capacity boxes provided for passengers.

Each passenger is allowed to receive only one box, which may then be checked as aircraft cargo free of charge. Passengers must use the official fruit boxes provided at airports only.

The initial target for the project is 100,000 boxes, equivalent to approximately 1,000 tonnes of fruit, Ms Banjongjitt said.

To ensure smooth transport, only fresh fruit is eligible. Packed fruits must be free from moisture. The boxes must be securely sealed with adhesive tape or straps to prevent insects, contaminants, leakage and odours.

The project is being carried out at 20 regional airports to start: Nan, Lampang, Tak, Phitsanulok, Loei, Udon Thani, Khon Kaen, Sakon Nakhon, Nakhon Phanom, Roi Et, Ubon Ratchathani, Buri Ram, Prachuap Khiri Khan, Chumphon, Ranong, Surat Thani, Nakhon Si Thammarat, Krabi, Trang and Narathiwat.

Ms Banjongjitt added that the collaboration would serve as another important way to help farmers market their produce, expand distribution channels and strengthen consumer confidence in Thai fruits.

Passengers would be able to bring fruits from tourist destinations back to their hometowns without worrying about transport costs, she said, adding that this would also expand market opportunities for Thai fruit.

CHON BURI -Khao Kheow Open Zoo has prepared a special celebration for much-loved Mae Mali, or Mother Mali, Thailand’s oldest hippopotamus, as she marks her 61st birthday on Sept 8.

Zoo director Narongwit Chodchoi said on Wednesday that the event will begin at 9.30am next Tuesday at the hippopotamus exhibit in Chon Buri province.

The celebration will feature a range of activities dedicated to Mae Mali, including an exhibition showcasing interesting facts about hippopotamuses and highlights from Mae Mali’s life story. Visitors will also be able to enjoy interactive games and receive commemorative souvenirs, said Mr Narongwit.

The highlight will be the presentation of a special fruit cake to Mae Mali, followed by a rendition of ‘Happy Birthday’ to mark her 61st birthday.

The celebration is expected to take place in a warm and festive atmosphere, surrounded by zoo staff, visitors and her many fans, said the zoo director.

Khao Kheow Open Zoo has invited visitors and Mae Mali’s admirers to take part in the occasion and send their birthday greetings to the senior hippo, who has been a cherished resident of the zoo and a favourite among the public for many years.

Mae Mali was a big draw at Dusit Zoo in Bangkok before it was closed down to make way for royal projects. She was moved to Khao Kheow Open Zoo on Dec 18, 2018.

Tilburg Zoo in the Netherlands gave the hippo to Thailand on June 8, 1967, when she was only a year old. She has since produced 14 offspring.

More than 5,000 US Navy personnel from the USS Abraham Lincoln have begun making their way into Pattaya, where they are expected to pour about 100 million baht into the local economy during five days of long-overdue shore leave.

Groups of sailors arrived at the Hard Rock Hotel Pattaya aboard buses and vans at around 2pm on Wednesday after disembarking earlier in morning at private piers in Laem Chabang and Sri Racha ports in Chon Buri province.

The hotel has been designated as the main transport and coordination centre for the visiting personnel.

The sailors, dressed casually, arrived with luggage for overnight stays in Pattaya and nearby areas. Several greeted members of the media with waves, while some offered a friendly ‘Sawasdee’ upon arrival. (Story continues below)

Pattaya Mayor Poramet Ngampichet, police chief Pol Col Anek Sathongyu, Bang Lamung district officials and business representatives welcomed the sailors with flower garlands, traditional Thai textiles and souvenirs.

Capt Dan Keeler, commanding officer of the USS Abraham Lincoln, thanked the city for its warm welcome, saying the crew were delighted and looking forward to relaxing.

Capt Keeler also presented Mr Poramet with a wooden plaque featuring a model of the Lincoln as a souvenir.

‘The relationship between Pattaya and the US Navy has existed for many years, with sailors regularly choosing the city as a recreation destination,’ Mr Poramet said.

‘This visit is particularly significant because the crew has spent a prolonged period at sea during operational deployments.’

Record-setting deployment

The Lincoln departed San Diego on Nov 21, 2025 for an expected six-month deployment to the Middle East but has remained deployed for more than nine months, with its only previous port call in Guam in mid-December. After leaving Pattaya they will sail back to San Diego.

The number of days at sea was believed to be a record, and there were numerous reports in the US about deteriorating conditions taking a heavy toll on the crew.

Mr Poramet said the sailors’ spending on accommodation, tourism, massage and spa services and other activities would benefit Pattaya’s economy.

He estimated that each sailor would spend at least $100 to $150 a day during the visit, generating at least 100 million baht in revenue.

The city was well prepared in terms of security measures, he said, while authorities were also monitoring businesses to prevent price-gouging. (Story continues below)

The mayor said Pattaya was now in the spotlight, with local and international media coverage an opportunity to showcase the city’s development, including improvements in cleanliness, pavements and signage reflecting an increasingly modern appearance.

Discussing restrictions on the sailors, Mr Poramet clarified that most of the conditions had been imposed by the US Navy for safety and security reasons, and not by the city.

For example, personnel are prohibited from taking part in water activities such as jet skiing. Cannabis shops are off-limits, as are pharmacies, because some medicines available in Thailand are not approved in the US and thus cannot be brought home.

The Navy also told personnel to stay away from Soi 6 and Soi 7, known mainly for large numbers of beer bars, though defenders say the area has a lot more to offer visitors.

The history of Soi 6 is closely linked with that of the American military in Asia, dating back to the Vietnam war era of the 1960s and 1970s. It was where the reputation of Pattaya, for better or worse, was created.

Most other areas of Pattaya, including the raucous late-night Walking Street, remain accessible to them, said the mayor.

Pol Col Anek said police would assist in ensuring the safety of sailors throughout Pattaya but would not focus on any particular area.

‘We want people to understand that these personnel are here to enjoy a vacation in Thailand,’ he said. ‘There is no reason for concern that they have come to cause problems or vent stress from their deployment.’

New cases of monkey pox (Mpox) and coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) continue to rise since June with the presence of a severer mpox strain and a low fatality rate for Covid-19, according to the Department of Disease Control.

Dr Montien Kanasawat, director-general of the department, said on Wednesday that from Jan 1 to Aug 23, Thailand recorded 254 Mpox cases, including 193 cases of the Clade Ib strain and 58 cases of the Clade II strain.

Patients were in Greater Bangkok, big cities and tourist provinces. Transmission resulted from sexual intercourses, which were related to visits to closed and crowded places.

Dr Montien said the Mpox situation in Thailand remained controllable and the number of cases was rising for the Clade Ib strain, which caused more severe symptoms than the Clade II strain especially in patients with low immunity.

Symptoms include fever, headache, swollen lymph nodes and rashes.

Regarding Covid-19 infection, Dr Jurai Wongsawat, spokeswoman of the Department of Disease Control, said from Jan 1 to Aug 31 there were about 99,000 cases. Records showed that there were more cases since June due to the conditions of the wet season but total cases were lower than figures in the past three years.

She said that the current fatality rate among Covid-19 patients was at 0.02% and most deaths were patients above the age of 60.

There had not been a child fatality this year as there were enough medicine and efficient treatment systems, which limited symptoms, Dr Jurai added.

Vaccination, good personal hygiene and avoiding close contact with infected people or contaminated surfaces are key to preventing both coronavirus and mpox. Covid-19 mainly spreads through respiratory droplets, whereas mpox spreads primarily through close, skin-to-skin contact.

A ride-hail passenger took to social media to raise concerns over safety after an unsettling experience in which they found a frightening human-like mask inside the vehicle.

The passenger, who shared their experience on Facebook, said they had booked the car through a popular ride-hailing app and was startled to discover what appeared to be a ghost mask attached to the back of the front passenger seat.

As they were in a hurry and had no choice but to continue with the journey, the discovery left them concerned about what might happen to women or children travelling alone in the vehicle at night.

‘I called this car and had an experience that felt like a nightmare,’ the passenger wrote in a post on the ‘We Are Consumers’ Facebook group.

The passenger filed a complaint with the ride-hailing platform’s customer service team, but claimed they felt their concerns had not been taken seriously.

Photos accompanying the post showed the mask, which had a disturbing human-like appearance, displayed behind the driver’s seat alongside a sign bearing actions that are not prohibited on the car.

Another image showed the vehicle parked by the roadside with what appeared to be its rear bumper removed, further raising concerns about the condition and safety of the car.

Highway police arrested five Chinese men and two Thais for carrying no legal travel documents, in this southern province on Saturday night.

According to the Central Investigation Bureau, police stopped a brown Hyundai H-1 van driving suspiciously fast in the right lane with curtains drawn on Highway 41 in tambon Wisai Tai of Sawee district, Chumphon, at 11.40pm on Saturday.

A search found Lin Gun, 30, He Dachun, 39, Zhang Buizi, 30, Xie Jia, 35, and Jiang Jiahui, 38, in the vehicle. They had no legal travel documents and claimed to be travelling from Cambodia to Malaysia, via Thailand.

Police also found two Thais, Somprasop, 53, and Preecha, 38, in the van. One of them was the driver and the other was escorting the men. Police seized eight mobile phones from the group.

The Chinese men told police, via an interpreter, that they sneaked into Thailand from Cambodia and were heading for Malaysia.

The Thai suspects said they were hired for 20,000 baht to pick up the Chinese group in the Central Plains and drop them off in Chana district of Songkhla, which borders Malaysia.

Indian tourist arrivals fell by more than 10% last month following changes to Thailand’s visa rules, while arrivals from other key foreign markets continued to improve in line with the recovery in flight capacity.

From Aug 1-22, Indian arrivals to Thailand declined by 11.6% year-on-year. However, the decline was an improvement from the 20.2% contraction recorded in July, according to the Bank of Thailand.

Speaking at a briefing on economic and monetary conditions for July on Monday, Pranee Sutthasri, senior director of the central bank’s macroeconomic department, said the decline in Indian tourist arrivals followed Thailand’s revision of visa exemption rules for foreign visitors, including Indian nationals.

In July, the cabinet decided to halve the visa-free stay for tourists, dropping many countries from the scheme while approving new privileges for other nationalities, including Indian tourists.

Under the new arrangement, the 30-day visa exemption applies to visitors from 60 countries.

Thailand also expanded visa privileges for six countries — India, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Malta and Maldives — and provided equal visa privileges to all 27 member states of the European Union.

In 2025, Indian travellers accounted for 7.5% of international tourist arrivals to Thailand, ranking third behind China, which accounted for 33.6%, and Europe, which contributed 12.4%. The Middle East ranked fourth, accounting for 3.7% of arrivals, according to the central bank.

Mrs Pranee said the central bank would continue to monitor Indian arrivals. From Aug 1-22, India was the only one of Thailand’s four primary international tourist markets to record a decline in arrivals.

During the period, arrivals from China increased by 23.5%, while those from Europe and the Middle East rose by 1.2% and 18.6% respectively.

Total foreign arrivals declined by 0.3% year-on-year, an improvement from the 2.5% contraction recorded in July.

In July, foreign tourist arrivals after seasonal adjustment increased to 2.5 million from 2.1 million in June, driven by long-haul markets such as Europe and the Middle East, as well as China, according to the central bank.

The improvement was supported by a gradual recovery in flight capacity following the easing of tensions in the Middle East, together with stronger travel demand during the summer school holiday in many countries.

Meanwhile, the recovery in tourist arrivals from short-haul markets, excluding China, remained gradual.

Tourism receipts after seasonal adjustment increased by 2.7% in July, in line with the uptick in foreign tourist arrivals.

However, spending per trip declined, reflecting a slightly shorter average length of stay as travel patterns normalised following the easing of the Middle East conflict, noted the regulator.

Looking ahead, the tourism recovery will partially depend on the recovery of flight capacity, which remains constrained, said Mrs Pranee.

Competition in regional tourism markets also remains intense and will affect the Thai travel sector’s trajectory, she said.

State enterprise investment spending in 2027 is expected to near the pre-pandemic level of 300 billion baht, according to the chief of the State Enterprise Policy Office (Sepo).

Tibordee Wattanakul, director-general of Sepo, said investment spending by state-owned enterprises is projected to reach 236 billion baht in 2026, while next year it is expected to rise to 280 billion baht, closer to the pre-Covid level of 300 billion baht. The increase reflects the economic recovery, he said.

Regarding the disbursement of state enterprise investment budgets, during the first 11 months of fiscal 2026, from October 2025 to August 2026, 218 billion baht was disbursed out of a total investment budget of 236 billion baht, roughly 92% of the allocation.

Mr Tibordee also discussed the performance of the Vayupak Fund, an investment fund offering units to the public owned by the Finance Ministry.

The fund’s net asset value (NAV) increased by 28% this year as of the end of July, growing in line with the Stock Exchange of Thailand index.

The Vayupak Fund focuses on investing in securities offering attractive returns, financial stability, business sustainability and good corporate governance, delivering robust performance aligned with the Thai bourse, he said.

As of July 31, the fund had an NAV of 596 billion baht, up from 490 billion at the end of 2025. The value comprised NAV of 156 billion baht for Type A investment units (held by general investors) and 440 billion baht for Type B investment units (held by the Finance Ministry).

According to Mr Tibordee, Sepo will continue to monitor the fund’s performance to ensure it remains capable of generating attractive and stable long-term returns for the public.

The fund should continue to serve as an important mechanism for developing the country’s money and capital markets, as well as supporting the economy, he noted.

Pop star Olivia Rodrigo has turned her first music festival into a US$20 million fundraising effort for women’s causes, with the singer’s Daisy Chain Fields drawing 45,000 fans to Great Park in Irvine, California this past Aug 29.

The festival initially raised $10 million for 10 non-profit organisations before philanthropist Melinda French Gates announced an additional $10 million contribution through her organisation, Pivotal, doubling the total.

The beneficiaries are Baby2Baby, Black Mamas Matter Alliance, Center for Reproductive Rights, FreeFrom, Jhpiego, Johns Hopkins Center for Indigenous Health, National Domestic Workers Alliance, National Institute for Reproductive Health, National Women’s Law Center and Planned Parenthood.

Rather than keeping philanthropy separate from the entertainment, 23-year-old Rodrigo incorporated it throughout the festival. The Daisy Chain Reaction philanthropy village gave visitors the opportunity to meet representatives from the organisations and learn more about their work, spanning reproductive health, maternal care, economic security, legal advocacy and gender equality.

Art was another central part of the experience. At the entrance, visitors encountered Yoko Ono’s Wish Tree, an interactive installation that invited festivalgoers to write their wishes on tags and attach them to its branches. The festival also featured work by the Guerrilla Girls and artist Jenny Holzer.

The music lineup reflected Rodrigo’s interest in connecting generations of women artists. Chappell Roan, Doechii, Mitski, Bikini Kill, Stevie Nicks, The Breeders and Santigold were among the performers, with Rodrigo closing the festival alongside a series of special guests.

The festival was inspired in part by Sarah McLachlan’s Lilith Fair, the groundbreaking touring festival she co-founded in 1997 to spotlight women in music at a time when female artists were often underrepresented on festival bills.

Lilith Fair went on to become one of the most successful touring festivals of its era, and its influence was evident in Rodrigo’s decision to build Daisy Chain Fields around an all-women lineup and a wider mission of solidarity. McLachlan, who was among the festival’s performers, joined Rodrigo onstage for ‘Building a Mystery’ and ‘Angel’.

All of the performers waived their fees, allowing more of the festival’s proceeds to go towards its charitable partners.

For Rodrigo, Daisy Chain Fields represents an expansion of her activism beyond the traditional concert stage. After one day, the festival had combined pop music, visual art and advocacy into a single platform, working to improve the lives of women and girls worldwide.