Thailand amends the Securities and Exchange Act and legalizes tokenized security issuances using blockchain technology.

The trading of blockchain-based securities has been made legal by Thailand’s National Legislative Assembly, according to a report by local newspaper The Bangkok Post on Friday, February 22nd, 2019.

The new regulation was passed in an amendment to the Securities and Exchange Act effective later this year. It allows the issuance of security tokens based on blockchain technology, in the same vein as stocks and bonds.

Tipsuda Thavaramara, Deputy Secretary of the Securities and Exchange Commission of Thailand (SEC), said further guidelines and regulations will allow crypto platforms, as well as businesses that operate as depositories of securities and digital tokens, to apply for a securities depository license for the purpose.

This type of business was previously licensed only to the Thailand Securities Depository Co. Ltd., a subsidiary of the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET).

The Commission also decided that the rights and obligations associated with a security token offering (STO) will determine if it is regulated under the current Securities and Exchange Act or the royal decree on digital assets.

Currently, the Thai Ministry of Finance is the state agency responsible for approving applications for the digital asset business license. Four crypto firms were recommended by the SEC Board for license approval, while two others were unable to fulfill the regulator’s requirements and were subsequently rejected.

SET plans to apply for a digital asset license to enable their customers to trade Bitcoin and other digital assets before end-2019.

Meanwhile, the National Electronics and Computer Technology Center, an agency under the supervision of the Thai Ministry of Science and Technology, is considering the use of blockchain in e-voting. The technology will be piloted in a closed environment for Thai nationals living abroad.