According to a press release distributed on January 20 with the Cointelegraph, the Thai Ministry of Finance and the Thai Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved Zipmex for a license that imposes strict regulatory requirements on applicants.

In order to obtain a license, applicants must prove that they have reliable financial sources - with a share capital of at least 50 million baht (about 1.65 million dollars) - and that they work at a high level in their IT and cybersecurity systems.

Under Thai law, licensed digital asset operators that are licensed are classified as financial institutions and must fulfill reporting obligations in the area of ​​anti-money laundering.

According to a press release, about 30 crypto-exchanges have already applied for licenses to the Securities and Exchange Commission. Interestingly, the applications of the two exchanges have already been rejected on the basis of insufficient KYC.

The license was introduced as part of the country's regulatory framework for digital assets, which led to the launch of the first ICO in October 2019.

The operator has secured a partnership with the public company AEC Securities Public Company in Thailand, which specializes in securities, brokerage services and investment banking, in order to attract both retail and institutional investors in the country.

With a license, the Zipmex Exchange expects to begin operations in Thailand earlier this year, having previously launched platforms in Australia, Singapore and Indonesia.

Digital currencies and securities are emerging asset classes for both the banked and unbanked. It is an interesting time in our financial history, and I’m glad Thai regulators are working with exchanges to build regulatory frameworks for these new technologies to operate within.

 

Dr. Sathit Limpongpan

Zipmex CEO

Despite the fact that the authorities initially tried to ban Bitcoin in 2013, the Thai government has taken a more active and pragmatic approach to the cryptography sector over the past year.

As reported, last January, the Thai Securities and Exchange Commission issued licenses to 4 cryptocurrency firms: Bitcoin Exchange Co., Bitkub Online Co. and Satang Corporation, as well as TH digital currency brokerage and dealer company.

These events were followed by an amendment to the country's law on securities and exchanges, adopted in February 2019, which legalized the issue of token securities using blockchain technology.