The anti-money laundering authority in Thailand is currently working on launching a new wallet. The government wants to have its own digital wallet to safely store Bitcoin and other crypto currencies associated with crimes.
The Thai crypto police are back on the news spy
Compared to other cryptopolice areas, the police area is relatively well regulated. The regulated climate was already growing there when distant neighbours were still ragingly swinging the regulation club. It was Thailand, for example, that considered regulating tokens when they were completely banned (or at least attempted) in China. However, the news spy was to take some time. Even in January, the former finance minister said that the news spy review was urgently needed. Then, in July 2018, some delicate advances were made. Thus the government began to issue its own law on crypto currencies instead of subjecting them to the lengthy process of laboriously classifying them under existing laws.
This was ultimately followed by the Thai supervisory authority SEC issuing seven approvals in August for companies that allow trading in crypto currencies. Thailand then tasted the regulatory soup with a circular letter to the financial institutions: Financial institutions should now have the green light for investments in the cryptosector. The relatively regulated situation then also made it possible for the country in Asia to now issue its own crypto currency.
It turns out that the situation in the country is more or less progressive. The legal framework is in place, but not too loose. The government has established clear guidelines as to what may and may not happen. So it should come as no surprise that the kingdom has its own crypto police. It is a division of the Anti-Money Laundering Authority, which now deals with crypto crimes.
The Crypto Police and their Bitcoin secret
Local media now report that the Anti-Money Laundering Authority has set up a special Bitcoin secret wallet for its activities according to onlinebetrug. With this, the authority wants to confiscate future coins from „illegal sources“ and store them (for itself). The legal foundations in Thailand are already relatively advanced. However, there is no legal basis for the confiscation of crypto assets. Even if the authorities have the authority to keep cyber criminals – a basis to confiscate crypto currencies and transfer them to the „anti-money laundering wallet“ does not exist yet. The much acclaimed anonymity of many coins often poses a problem for law enforcement authorities:
„A big problem with digital assets and similar evidence is the difficulty in finding out the identity of those who send them. When we present the evidence in court, it usually doesn’t convince the courts“.
stresses Chartpong Chirabandhu, Department of Special Litigation in Thailand, to the Thai magazine The Nation.
Technical details of the wallet are not yet known. However, with regard to the legal situation, new guidelines will soon be established again. If one considers the development to date and the progress of the regulatory authorities in Thailand, the legal basis for the confiscation of crypto currencies can be expected shortly.