The government supports the Bank of Thailand in stepping up strict control over financial transactions; deposits or exchanges exceeding 5 million baht must explain their origins, aiming to curb grey capital in drug trafficking.
On 13 Jul 2026 GMT+7, Ms. Ratchada Thanadirek, spokesperson for the Prime Minister's Office, revealed that the government continues to crack down on grey capital and economic crime by integrating efforts of financial agencies, law enforcement, and regulators to close money laundering channels and disrupt criminal financial networks, with tangible results already emerging in several areas.
The Prime Minister's Office spokesperson said the latest action by the Bank of Thailand will intensify measures against grey capital starting this October. This will extend to cases where cash deposits exceed 5 million baht, requiring reporting of the source, including cash exchanges—for example, exchanging 10 million baht in 1,000-baht notes into 100-baht or 500-baht notes—where reasons must be given. This will enhance prevention of money laundering and misuse of the financial system for illegal activities. Previously, requiring reports on cash withdrawals over 5 million baht reduced large cash transactions by about 35%, while monitoring suspicious transactions led to the closure of thousands of suspect accounts.
Meanwhile, progress continues under the government’s grey capital crackdown policy, such as investigating nominee businesses, which reduced risky companies by about 60% in Q1 2026, asset seizures related to grey capital networks exceeding 8 billion baht by relevant agencies, and cutting off financial routes of drug trafficking networks, with assets frozen over 10 billion baht between 1 April and 10 June 2026.
Ms. Ratchada said the current crackdown on grey capital is not only about apprehending offenders but prioritizes dismantling the financial bases and routes of criminal networks, relying on cooperation among all agencies according to their roles, including the Bank of Thailand, Anti-Money Laundering Office (AMLO), Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Department of Business Development, Royal Thai Police, and related agencies, to build a transparent, fair economic system that fosters long-term trust among citizens and investors.
Regarding the operations of the Anti-Online Fraud Center (ACSC) and the Center for Combating Transnational Criminals and Illegal Immigration, reports over the past nine months (October 2025 to June 2026) highlight three key achievements:
1. Protecting the public from online crime victims, assisting 862 victims and preventing damages exceeding 82 million baht.
2. Blocking criminals' financial routes by closing over 351,000 mule accounts and freezing more than 3.6 billion baht linked to criminal offenses.
3. Continuously investigating and arresting scammer networks, with over 29,000 suspects arrested and more than 70 network leaders indicted.