The Bank of Thailand (BOT) is reportedly also covering CBDC development catering to retail via a pilot phase. 

Specifically, together with its wholesale central bank digital currency (CBDC) initiatives and proof-of-concept Retail CBDC testing with corporates, a potential real-life application of the “Retail CBDC” is down the pipeline to be carried out within the private sector on a limited scale. 

“The BOT will assess the benefits and associated risks from the Pilot to formulate related policies and improve the CBDC design in the future.”

The pilot will reportedly be divided into two individual stages. During the first one – a “Foundation track” – testings for CBDC will be conducted in cash-like activities, for instance, payment for goods and services, within limited territories, applicable for a scope of 10,000 retail users. 

There will also be three establishments to take part in the experiment – the Bank of Ayudhya, Siam Commercial Bank, and 2C2P. The testing is scheduled to be commenced at the end of this year and will run until mid-2023.

The second phase – going by the name the “Innovation track” – will concentrate mainly on presenting innovative use cases for CBDC. The private sector and the public will have an opportunity to present their use cases for Retail CBDC via a “CBDC Hackathon,” which will happen from Aug. 5 through Sept. 12th of the next year 2022. 

A group of chosen participants will acquire mentorship from veteran financial institutions.

In the meantime, the BOT reportedly has no plans down its pipeline to issue Retail CBDC, “as the issuance requires thorough consideration” of risks and benefits for the financial system in general.

On Aug. 4, Thailand’s financial regulator, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) reportedly offered operating licenses to four digital asset operators, regardless of woes associated with the Singapore-based exchange Zipmex, which halted withdrawals for customers in the nation in July.