The SEC signals its intent to expand investment options in Thailand’s capital market, viewing cryptocurrencies as assets that can help diversify investment portfolios. It supports developing risk management tools like Crypto Futures and aims to enable new investment products to reach investors more easily.
Meanwhile, TFEX is studying foreign models and designing contracts suited to the Thai context, aiming to allow more retail investors access to the crypto derivatives market. It also launched “Mini Gold Online Futures” to target retail gold investors.
Pranong Bussaratakul, Secretary-General of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). She explained that the SEC regards digital assets as an asset class already regulated by the agency. From an investment perspective, including crypto assets in a portfolio can provide diversification benefits and support investor growth.
Furthermore, when investors speculate on crypto assets, they should have financial tools to manage risks alongside. Therefore, Crypto Futures contracts address the critical need for portfolio risk hedging.
She also emphasized building an ecosystem in the capital market. Traditionally, crypto investors must open digital wallets, which is not always convenient and raises security concerns.
Having alternatives like Crypto Futures or Crypto ETFs offers new ways to overcome these limitations, allowing investors easier access to new asset types under internationally recognized systems.
The SEC is collaborating with relevant agencies, especially the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET), and expects clarity by Q3/2026 to provide new options for Thailand’s capital market.
. Trivit Wangvorawut, Managing Director of the Thailand Futures Exchange Public Company Limited (TFEX). He revealed that TFEX is working closely with the SEC and market participants, carefully studying overseas models of ETFs and Futures markets to determine contract types suitable for Thailand.
A key challenge TFEX is considering is investor accessibility. For example, in the U.S., crypto futures markets typically restrict access to high-net-worth individuals.
However, TFEX intends to design products that allow retail investors in Thailand to participate, adjusting contract details to better fit the Thai investor context.
Regarding progress, the legal framework is now clear after the Cabinet approved the Futures Contract Act allowing crypto as an underlying commodity. The remaining steps involve preparing internal systems and finalizing contract details.
TFEX is working swiftly to determine the product’s format, aiming to prepare and launch it soon to offer new choices for Thailand’s capital market.
Trivit added that TFEX’s current average daily trading volume is about 400,000 contracts. While Gold Online Futures has been a main product, to expand and better serve investors,
TFEX today launched a new product, “Mini Gold Online Futures,” to make gold investment more accessible to retail investors by requiring less margin, offering convenience, and assuring liquidity through careful design.
Each contract equals one troy ounce (approximately 2 baht of Thai gold), maintaining all standard features. TFEX also appointed liquidity providers to ensure efficient trading. This is expected to attract both new investors seeking portfolio diversification into gold and those already trading physical gold bars to try futures instruments more easily.
TFEX aims to increase the number of trading accounts by 10–20% from the current base of about 4.3 million unique Thai stock trading accounts, where futures participation is less than 10%, and expects daily trading volume to grow by 10–20%.
However, TFEX still faces challenges with retail investors’ understanding. Many perceive futures trading as complex, difficult to understand, and excessively risky, deterring them from entering this market.
In reality, the risks of trading futures are not fundamentally different from trading the underlying assets.
The key to risk management is not the market’s name but understanding the contract’s value and the actual amount an investor intends to commit.
Therefore, overcoming this challenge starts with the basics: investors need to "know and understand themselves" first, assessing their readiness for contract size and risk tolerance, as well as "understand the product."
Once investors grasp these fundamentals, investing in TFEX becomes less intimidating. Currently, the Stock Exchange provides comprehensive educational resources to help investors use these tools effectively.
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