Nikolas Sargeant
Thailand's government has ordered a comprehensive crackdown on "grey money" flows, directing regulators to tighten oversight of gold trading and digital assets while establishing interconnected financial data systems designed to make money laundering more difficult to conceal across multiple asset classes.
Officials use the term "grey money" to describe funds moving through ostensibly legal channels but often traceable to criminal syndicates, tax evasion, or other illicit activities, particularly when traders exploit regulatory gaps between traditional physical asset rules and newer digital transaction platforms.
Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul outlined the initiative following a high-level session at the Finance Ministry on Friday, with Finance Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Ekniti Nitithanprapas and other agencies tasked with closing loopholes in non-physical gold trades and digital asset flows.
A central component of the plan involves establishing a Data Bureau, a shared system linking datasets from relevant agencies via Open API to provide authorities unified visibility of suspicious activity across gold, digital assets, e-wallets, foreign exchange, and cash transactions without creating a new standalone regulatory body.
For gold markets, anti-money laundering authorities have been directed to reduce the mandatory reporting threshold for gold bar purchases from the current 2 million baht level to a significantly lower figure, aiming to curtail "smurfing" tactics where large sums are divided into smaller transactions to evade detection systems.
Regulators also intend to subject online gold trading to stricter supervision. The Revenue Department is studying a new specific business tax for platforms facilitating gold trades without physical delivery, while the government seeks stricter accounting standards, specialized accounts for providers, and reporting mechanisms enabling state audits.
The gold enforcement focus connects to currency dynamics, with officials linking unusually large gold-related flows to the baht's strength. Reuters reported the finance ministry is exploring taxation and possible trading caps after the baht appreciated approximately 10.3% during 2025, creating pressure on exporters and tourism-dependent businesses.
For cryptocurrency markets, the Securities and Exchange Commission has been ordered to strictly enforce the Travel Rule, requiring digital asset providers to identify both senders and receivers in wallet-to-wallet transfers, tightening oversight around flows that previously relied on anonymity protections.
Anutin characterized the initiative as an enforcement modernization addressing both traditional and emerging financial channels simultaneously. "Today, we are not only addressing modern digital threats but also 'analogue' financial crimes," he stated, adding, "We must work as a single, integrated force to protect the public interest and the integrity of our financial system."
For cryptocurrency exchanges, brokers, and other service providers, the regulatory shift means heightened compliance expectations, expanded identity verification requirements, and stricter reporting on transfers touching regulated platforms as Thailand attempts to prevent illicit funds from moving between gold, cash, and cryptocurrency without creating traceable records.
