FX.co ★ Thailand to offer digital currency handouts to its citizens

Thailand’s government has recently come up with an idea to donate money to its citizens via the Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC). The new project suggests that every citizen over the age of 16 could receive 10,000 baht ($280) through a digital wallet in the form of CBDC. The total budget estimated for the project stands at 548 billion baht ($15 billion). The nation's Ministry of Finance believes that this move would provide substantial support to the country’s economy. The use of digital money could potentially boost the economy by an additional 5% through increased consumer spending and tax revenue growth. However, there has been a shift in the government's plans, and this initiative has been temporarily put on hold. Ultimately, Thailand's Finance Ministry announced a pause in rolling out this initiative until February 1, 2024. The statement highlighted the need for additional time to develop safeguard measures to protect users' funds and personal data. The ministry emphasized the prevalent global concern over cyber threats targeting digital transactions, hence placing security at the forefront of their considerations. As a backdrop to these developments, in September 2023, Thai police detained five foreign nationals involved in fraudulent cryptocurrency investment schemes. As a result of these scams, around 3,200 Thai residents were defrauded of $27 million.