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Thailand’s SEC expands list of approved cryptocurrencies to include stablecoins

Policy & Regulation·March 11, 2025, 7:24 AM

Thailand's Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has approved the leading U.S. dollar stablecoins USDT and USDC, expanding its list of approved cryptocurrencies within the Southeast Asian country.

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Listing on regulated exchanges 

The approval was announced in a statement published on the SEC website on March 6. It means that Tether’s USDT and Circle’s USDC can now be listed on regulated exchanges in Thailand.

 

The regulator had arrived at its decision to add the two stablecoins following a public consultation process regarding regulatory changes. Those changes were finalized last month and will now proceed to go into effect on March 16.

 

The two stablecoins join five cryptocurrencies that had previously been approved. These include Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), Ripple (XRP) and Stellar (XLM). Certain cryptocurrencies are also being used for the testing of payment settlement through the Bank of Thailand’s Programmable Payment Sandbox.  

 

A regulatory sandbox is a controlled environment testing ground for products and services developed within the private sector. Back in June of last year, the Southeast Asian country’s central bank launched an enhanced regulatory sandbox focused on programmable payments. 

 

USDT issuer Tether responded to the addition of its stablecoin within the approved cryptocurrency list, stating:

 

“This approval enables USD₮ to be traded within the country, facilitating its listing on regulated exchanges and paving the way for USD₮ to be accepted for payments, which advances the region’s leadership in digital asset innovation.”

 

Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino said that the company sees value in the Thai market and with that, it intends to continue to explore ways to broaden its service offering within Thailand.

 

He added: 

 

“We are committed to supporting the long-term success and adoption of stablecoins in Thailand and look forward to contributing to the growth of the country’s digital asset ecosystem by fostering a strong and sustainable stablecoin infrastructure.”

 

Stablecoin market growth 

According to DeFi data aggregation platform DefiLlama, the stablecoin market now stands at $227 billion in terms of market capitalization. This represents a 68% increase by comparison with the size of the market in 2023.

 

It indicates that stablecoin adoption is on an upward growth trajectory. Digital assets are being used in many instances to facilitate international payments and remittances, particularly in emerging markets.

 

In Europe, American investment bank JPMorgan recently forecasted that the introduction of the Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulation will drive euro-pegged stablecoin growth. 

 

Meanwhile, in the United States, S&P Global Ratings recently identified that a current lack of stablecoin regulation is acting as a barrier to broader institutional use. The company anticipates adoption growth once regulatory clarity has been achieved.

 

Vlad Tenev, CEO of commission-free investing platform Robinhood, stated last month on Yahoo Finance’s Opening Bid podcast that stablecoin legislation will be passed in the U.S. in 2025. Tenev believes that applying a 4% interest rate to stablecoins would lead to a greater rate of adoption.

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