The Bank of Thailand has announced the start of a pilot project to test a retail Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) in a regulatory sandbox.
The project will commence this month and will continue until August 2023. It aims to involve up to 10,000 customers and provide insights into the deployment and viability of a CBDC in the retail industry.
Prominent financial institutions, including Bank of Ayudhya (Krungsri), Siam Commercial Bank, and Singaporean payments service provider 2C2P, have joined forces. They have joined forces for this CBDC test project.
They have released unique apps that act as digital wallets and QR code readers for a small number of users, ensuring a seamless and experience.
Krungsri, one of Thailand’s top financial institutions, has invited people, including its staff members and about 100 nearby businesses. They are invited to participate in the testing phase of this digital currency.
They aim to enroll 2,000 people who must download a mobile banking app and fund their e-wallets to join. These users can then send money to the CBDC, equivalent to 1 THB (approximately $0.028) in “digital baht”.
Since 2018, the Bank of Thailand developed a wholesale CBDC and actively participated in significant initiatives. Examples include the mBridge cross-border payment project with the Bank for International Settlements and the Project Inthanon-Lion Rock project with the Hong Kong Monetary Authority.
In March 2023, the Thai government took steps to support the expansion of the digital token industry. They abolished the corporate income tax and value-added tax for businesses creating investment tokens.
