The government remains committed to turning Thailand into a financial hub, says the chief of the Fiscal Policy Office (FPO).
According to Vinit Visessuvanapoom, director-general of the FPO, the draft Financial Hub Act, which was prepared during the previous administration but was not considered by the House of Representatives, has been returned for further review.
The FPO is re-examining the draft and plans to accelerate its consideration alongside other policy initiatives, he said.
"We are reviewing everything again, including the original draft legislation. Whatever policy can be implemented first will be our priority," said Mr Vinit.
"We remain committed to promoting the financial hub scheme, but as for the specific approach and implementation, we will provide further details once there is greater clarity."
Last July the cabinet approved the draft bill following review and approval by the Council of State.
At that time, the government predicted the act would elevate Thailand to a regional financial centre. The legislation was designed to overhaul licensing and regulatory processes for businesses operating within the Financial Hub framework, making them more comprehensive, streamlined and business-friendly.
The initiative also aimed to attract investment by establishing a central authority responsible for formulating policies to promote Thailand as a financial hub, while helping to develop the financial industry through both human capital development and infrastructure enhancement to meet the needs of global financial institutions.
To achieve these objectives, the government proposed establishing the Office of the Financial Business Hub Regulatory and Promotion Commission as a one-stop authority.
The new agency would be responsible for establishing eligibility criteria for business operators and licensing mechanisms, determining incentive packages to attract investors, and developing effective supervisory and regulatory frameworks that are aligned with international standards.
The target businesses covered under this legislation include commercial banking, payment services, securities businesses, futures trading, digital asset businesses, insurance, reinsurance brokerage, and other financial businesses or related/supporting businesses.
Under the proposed framework, these businesses would be permitted to provide services only to non-residents, except in two cases: services provided between target business operators themselves; and services provided to business operators regulated as securities and exchange, futures trading, or digital asset businesses, where such activities are undertaken as market participants or to support the domestic financial market.
