Key Insights
- Thailand indefinitely extends tax break on cryptocurrency trading gains
- Seeks to boost growth of digital asset sector amid regional competition
- Tax exemption includes regulated crypto brokers and dealers
BANGKOK (MarketsXplora) – Thailand has extended a tax break on cryptocurrency trading gains as the Southeast Asian nation steps up efforts to become a regional digital assets hub.
The country’s revenue department will indefinitely waive the 7% value added tax (VAT) usually applied to crypto trading returns to boost growth, the Bangkok Post reported on Wednesday.
The tax exemption also covers regulated dealers and brokers, the English-language daily said, part of incentives Thailand approved last year to attract global virtual currency exchanges like Binance.
The Ministry of Finance did not immediately respond to a MarketsXplora request for comment. But the move aligns with a cryptocurrency push from policymakers in Thailand, where tourism has faded during the pandemic.
Regulators approved the country’s first two crypto trading platforms in 2022 and are pressing ahead with a central bank digital currency.
Global exchange Binance’s Thai joint venture went live last November after the government’s liberalisation drive. The offshoot, Gulf-Binance, opened to the public in December offering spot trading of coins like bitcoin.
Rival Singapore, by contrast, taxes cryptocurrencies like any other asset and imposes value added tax on digital transactions though authorities also hope to draw crypto business through transparent rules.
Analysts predict patchy regulatory approaches around Southeast Asia could aid Thailand’s digital asset aspirations in the near term.