The Bank of Thailand (BOT) is adopting a hardline approach to regulate foreign currency movements by mandating that entities disclose the origin of inflows exceeding $200,000. Announced by Governor Vitai Ratanakorn, these measures are scheduled to take effect on 29 December 2025. The primary objective is to curb Thai Baht volatility and mitigate currency pressure resulting from high-volume international capital flows.
Under these tightened rules, authorised legal entities must strictly verify documentation for spot transactions—the immediate purchase or deposit of foreign currency—for any resident-led transaction of $200,000 or the equivalent. While financial institutions may continue to use a Know Your Business (KYB) process for trusted, long-term clients with established Know Your Customer (KYC) and Customer Due Diligence (CDD) profiles, the central bank has designated several high-risk categories where this “shortcut” is explicitly prohibited.
Investors in Thai real estate and digital assets face the most significant hurdles under the new regime. For digital asset transactions, the BOT now requires additional documentation verifying either the source of the digital assets or the funds used to acquire them. Furthermore, the KYB exemption is unavailable for capital flows that fall outside of traditional securities, intra-group loans, or standard trade in goods and services.
The regulations also zero in on gold and physical cash. Any transaction involving gold—regardless of the amount—requires proof of a foreign sale on the trade date. For physical foreign banknotes, the disclosure threshold is significantly lower, set at $15,000 or equivalent, requiring evidence that the currency was brought into the country. For forward transactions, the BOT will maintain existing standards from 2004, though the ban on using KYB processes still applies to the aforementioned high-risk investment categories.
This regulatory shift signals the BOT’s intent to monitor the “quality” of capital entering the country. By requiring immediate, transaction-level evidence, the central bank aims to separate legitimate commercial activities from speculative “hot money” that can destabilize the local economy.
