UK and Thailand sign FinTech MOU
The UK has signed a financial services MOU with Thailand.
The new Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), which was signed on Monday (9 January) and announced on Tuesday (10 January), will see the two nations strengthen their partnership to support the financial sector in each country.
The latest MOU follows an earlier one signed in 2020 which established a partnership between the UK government and the Securities and Exchange Commission of Thailand (SEC Thailand) which saw UK authorities support their Thai counterparts in various areas. These included setting accounting standards, developing the Thai FinTech ecosystem, promoting sustainable economics and supporting the implementation of electronic Know Your Customer (e-KYC) technology and cyber security.
The new agreement will focus on supporting Thailand to further develop the regulatory environment for its FinTech sector, promote sustainable finance, and raise awareness of sustainable investment in Thailand and other Southeast Asian countries, the UK government said in a statement.
“FinTech and sustainable finance are key areas emphasized by SEC Thailand,” Ruenvadee Suwanmongkol, Secretary General of SEC Thailand, said in the announcement. “We strongly believe that the new MoU with the UK government will support the improvement of the financial ecosystem as well as promote the development of inclusive and sustainable economic growth.”
Mark Gooding, UK Ambassador to Thailand, added: “Financial services are a key driver of the modern economy. We are proud to take another step in our long-standing partnership with SEC Thailand with a particular focus on cutting edge finance: FinTech and sustainability.”
Although not legally binding like trade agreements, Memoranda of Understanding are strategic diplomatic tools that governments use to encourage cooperation and enable more fruitful dialogue and exchange between participants.
For the UK, while negotiations on several proposed post-Brexit trade deals, including one with the US, have stalled, MOUs have been deployed in a number of cases to support the country’s financial sector.
For example, recent examples signed with Singapore and Korea have used the concept of the “FinTech bridge”, to enable more frictionless trade in services and facilitate cross-investment between the UK and its partners.
Both the UK-Singapore and UK-Korea FinTech bridges were designed to provide a formalized framework for cooperation between regulatory, tax and customs authorities, covering policy issues, trade and investment.
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