Thailand, Hungary enter into bilateral partnership to explore blockchain technology
Financial technology bodies in both Thailand and Hungary have entered into a bilateral partnership to explore the use of blockchain technology in their countries.
The Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was signed by the Thai Fintech Association (TFA) and the Hungarian Blockchain Coalition on October 25. According to a Facebook post by the Hungarian Embassy in Bangkok, the move allowed both associations to “share experiences, best practices and explore potentially useful areas for direct cooperation.”
The groundbreaking event introduced several Hungarian companies in the digital assets industry to Thailand’s growing ecosystem. Companies such as WhiteHat, Family Finances and Digital Farmers Market were urged by Chonladet Khemarattana, president of TFA, to seize the opportunity to make inroads in Thailand.
Khemarattana stated that international cooperation would be instrumental in improving the local virtual assets industry, while noting that Thailand is one of the fastest growing countries in terms of adoption. He stated that Thailand was ranked 8th in the Chainalysis 2022 Global Crypto Adoption Index and claimed that 20% of virtual asset users are in Thailand.
Despite the cooperation of both organizations, the use of blockchain and virtual assets in Hungary and Thailand faces strict tests from regulators. In Thailand, regulators are increasingly cracking down on digital asset lending platforms as service providers eye a potential ban on the provision of custody services.
Hungary’s central bank governor Gyorgy Matolcy called on the European Union (EU) to introduce a blanket ban on digital asset trading across the region on the grounds that it was “speculative” and that it “served illegal activity”.
No to virtual currencies, but yes to DLT
While virtual currencies face tighter nooses in both jurisdictions, the use of DLT receives regulatory protection. Thailand’s central bank is leaning on the technology to explore a central bank digital currency (CBDC), with the pilot starting towards the end of the year.
Matolcy appears receptive to CBDCs, noting that they “could be one of the next steps for digital currency to become a form of payment,” but cautioned that a “learning-by-doing” strategy should be adopted.
In the EU, of which Hungary is a member, steady progress is being made towards the use of tokenized securities – virtual assets to represent stocks and bonds using DLT. The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has been given the operational responsibility to explore their use for three years.
See: BSV Global Blockchain Convention panel, The Future of Financial Services on Blockchain: More Efficiency & Inclusion
width=”562″ height=”315″ frameborder=”0″ allowfullscreen=”allowfullscreen”>
New to Bitcoin? Check out CoinGeeks Bitcoin for beginners section, the ultimate resource guide for learning more about Bitcoin – as originally envisioned by Satoshi Nakamoto – and blockchain.
