Bank of Thailand sets $1400 daily transfer cap to reduce scams

By Vriti Gothi

Bank of Thailand has a set of regulations designed to fortify the nation’s digital financial ecosystem, underscoring its commitment to customer protection, fraud prevention, and alignment with international best practices. Effective 8 August 2025, the new decree marks a major milestone in advancing trust and resilience across mobile banking, payments, and digital asset services.

The measures place shared accountability on financial institutions, e-payment providers, digital asset firms, telecom operators, and social media platforms, which will be jointly liable for damages arising from technology-related crimes unless compliance with regulatory standards can be demonstrated. By embedding responsibility across the value chain, the rules aim to deliver stronger safeguards for consumers while fostering a secure and sustainable digital economy.

Built on five guiding principles targeted at risk management, procedural clarity, contextual alignment with Thailand’s financial landscape, adherence to international standards, and enhanced public awareness, the framework introduces a new era of proactive, technology-enabled protection. These measures expand on earlier campaigns against mule accounts and introduce innovations such as real-time withdrawal alerts, advanced biometric authentication, and controls designed to limit exposure to suspicious applications.

Key enhancements include tightened mobile banking protections through the banning of suspicious links, restrictions on multi-device usage, the deployment of facial recognition with biometric forgery detection, and automatic blocking of high-risk applications. Banks will also be required to follow stricter Know Your Customer (KYC) protocols when onboarding customers, in line with guidelines from the Bank of Thailand (BoT) and the Anti-Money Laundering Office. High-risk account holders, categorised as Black, Dark Grey, or Light Grey, will be subject to enhanced due diligence to mitigate systemic vulnerabilities.

Customer-centric safeguards are at the heart of the initiative. Financial institutions must provide free transfer notifications, block suspicious funds, suspend transactions in real time, and deny mule account holders the ability to open new accounts. Around-the-clock fraud-reporting channels and emergency assistance for customers exceeding transfer caps further reinforce the commitment to rapid response and customer trust.