Thailand Cabinet approves four bills to tighten capital-market oversight and digital-asset rules

Thailand’s Cabinet approved four proposed amendment bills on August 25, 2026, covering the Securities and Exchange Act B.E. 2535 of 1992, the Emergency Decree on Digital Asset Businesses B.E. 2561 of 2018 and other financial-market rules. The measures would expand the Securities and Exchange Commission’s authority to expedite investigations into serious capital-market offenses, strengthen oversight of auditors and financial advisers, validate electronic documentation in more contexts, and update fundraising, secondary-market and digital-asset rules. The reforms remain proposed rather than enacted and must still clear Thailand’s legislative process. In a parallel track, the SEC on Aug. 24 opened public consultation through Sept. 20 on draft rules for domestic crypto ETFs that would initially allow passive, single-asset funds focused on Bitcoin or Ethereum, each required to maintain average net exposure of at least 80% of net asset value to its chosen asset over an accounting year. Locally established products would trade only on the Stock Exchange of Thailand and initially hold assets primarily with Thai SEC-regulated digital-asset custodians, giving domestic fund managers, the exchange and local custodians a structural first-wave advantage, while mutual and private funds can already invest in overseas crypto ETFs and the SEC separately consults on qualified foreign custodians. Alternative products tied to foreign crypto ETFs, including depositary receipts and certain securities-company arrangements for clients outside institutional and ultra-high-net-worth categories, would be restricted initially, making locally domiciled ETFs the most direct retail route. Licensed custodial wallet providers on the SEC registry include Rakkar Digital and Orbix Custodian; registered digital-asset fund managers include Soberin, Orbix Invest and Merkle, alongside 24 licensed mutual-fund management companies, though no applicant or mandate is named. Investors would face product-risk education and acknowledgment requirements. The SEC expects related rules to take effect later in 2026, with no ETF launch date set. The draft sits alongside broader digital-asset oversight, including a Bank of Thailand anti-money-laundering framework planned for the fourth quarter of 2026.