In August of 2019, in a move to tackle money-laundering and other illegal financial activities. The Thai cabinet approved a draft regulation that allows Thai financial institutions to check their customers’ sources of money. This is known as the Anti-Money Laundering Office (Amlo).
The draft contains a set of improved criteria to examine the information of financial institutions’ customers.
“For cross-border wire transfers exceeding 50,000 baht (about $1,600 USD), both the ordering and the recipient institution will be required to have information about the origin of the funds, as well as both the benefactor and beneficiary,” said a government spoke the person.
The new regulation would affect investment consultants, gem and gold traders, real estate brokers, electronic payment service providers, antique traders under the law governing auctions and the antique trade, and non-bank credit companies.
Any suspicious financial activities the financial institution is required to suspend the business transaction of the customers and report it to the Anti-Money Laundering Office.
BWT, I never had a Thai bank asking me about where my money came from when I transfer my money from oversea to my bank in Thailand, and I transfer more than 50,000 baht, but not over 100,000 baht. Maybe one time I went over 100,000 baht.
As long as it doesn’t look suspicious, you’re not moving around a huge amount of money, or you are you laundering money for illegal activities. I wouldn’t worry too much about it.
Source: bangkokpost.com
Thailand Anti-Money Laundering law to include Cryptocurrency
Since we’re on the topic of money-laundering and illegal financial activities. The Thai government is also looking into the Anti-Money Laundering law to include cryptocurrency.
Speaking to the Bangkok Post, Police Major General Preecha Charoensahayanon, secretary-general of the Anti-Money Laundering Office (Amlo), said he believes that, while currently not an issue, cryptocurrency
will be a tool of new money laundering.
Preecha said that Amlo currently does not receive complaints around money laundering involving cryptocurrencies, but warned:
We may not find any clue, but that doesn’t mean the wrongdoing does not occur.
The Thai secretary-general said that criminals would gradually turn to digital assets to conceal their ill-gotten proceeds.
To prevent that, the Thai secretary-general is preparing to change the law to include cryptocurrency. By requiring cryptocurrency providers to report activities to the Anti-Money Laundering Office.
The legal changes would correspond with international standards on crypto exchange service providers, he said.
Source: coindesk.com
