CBDC in Thailand: 10,000 BAHT donations for every citizen

In Thailand, the Pheu Thai Party has proposed a donation of 10,000 BAHT for every citizen over the age of 16 via CBDC. The aim is to revive digital wallets as the country’s economic recovery strategy.

Thailand: proposal to give 10,000 BAHT in CBDC to boost the country’s economy

In Thailand, it could soon be the case that every citizen over the age of 16 could receive 10,000 BAHT in the Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC).

As reported by the Bangkok Post, it appears that the Pheu Thai political party is banking on CBDCs to boost the country’s economy.

Specifically, their plan proposes that the “donation” of 10,000 BAHT in CBDC will be made for all citizens over the age of 16 through an app containing the digital wallet.

Deputy Secretary General Paopoom Rojanasakul said that should anyone not have access to this app, the alternative would be to use their national ID card to obtain a personal code.

This digital money worth $280 must be spent within a four-kilometer radius of the recipients’ homes and is valid for six months.

The BAHT as CBDC is part of a program to reintroduce digital wallets, obviously when the Pheu Thai political party will be in office. Currently, in Thailand, the winner of the election on 14 May is the Move Forward Party.

Thailand: BAHT as CBDC does not bring negative effects on the country’s financial security

Should the Pheu Thai party’s program become a reality and work, it would make Thailand as one of the first countries to introduce a CBDC as a form of payment.

In this regard, Paopoom said that the Pheu Thai economic team has carefully evaluated the program and believes that there will be no negative effects on the country’s financial security. On the contrary, it would stimulate significant economic growth.

Not only that, here are his reported words:

“Now the situation has changed and Pheu Thai is now the core (of a new coalition),Today, the party would like to officially declare that it will move ahead with the digital wallet policy, using blockchain technology.

That is to say, we will go ahead with the digital wallet scheme and make it fully operational for the benefit of the country.”

Srettha Thavisin, who is expected to be nominated as the party’s premier candidate, also said the move of donating 10,000 BAHT in the CBDC format would trigger an “economic tsunami” of consumption, bringing benefits to many sectors of the economy.

The situation of Central Bank Digital Currency in August

In August alone, in addition to Thailand, other countries have also been in the news about themselves and their Central Bank Digital Currency projects.

For example, Brazil “rebranded” the name of its soon-to-be-issued CBDC. From “digital real,” in fact, it was recently stated that the name of Brazil’s CBDC will be Drex and that is an acronym for Digital Real Elettronica and the “X” is an added letter to convey the idea of modernity and connectivity.

Russia also seems to be in the process of testing its digital ruble in the CBDC format with 13 banks and a small circle of their customers. The idea is that by the end of 2023, the list of pilot project participants will be expanded.

Regarding collaborations with Ripple, there are already many Central Banks in different countries experimenting with its solution to develop a CBDC based on XRP Ledger. The latest is the Bank of New Zealand.