Bitcoin Global News (BGN)
August 06, 2018 -- ADVFN Crypto NewsWire -- On Friday,
the Bank of Thailand, which is the
equivalent of its Federal Reserve, paved the way for Thai banks to
more easily deal in Cryptocurrencies. More specifically, they
decided to pass a regulation that
effectively seems to have made it legal for Thai banks to deal in
Cryptocurrencies, through subsidiaries.
In this case, by subsidiaries, we mean what are
effectively separate companies from the banks and are yet
controlled by them at the same time.
For a well-known example of how
this can work out, think about Unilever and how they own Dove and
Axe as brands, but also as effectively separate companies under
their wing.
What this new regulation also means
is that while Thai banks cannot directly deal in Cryptocurrencies,
they can do so indirectly, as long as they create such separate
companies for this purpose.
Despite all of this, the Bank of
Thailand tried to make it clear that all Thai banks are still
banned from doing any sort of direct business with
Cryptocurrencies, which includes Blockchain projects that release
tokens that do not explicitly function as currencies.
Even so, the ban seems a bit
illogical, at best.
The biggest reason for arguing
against this ban is that with this new regulation, comes an
excellent loophole for these banks.
Given that laws like those that aim
to protect the investor in the traditional finance space are almost
non-existent, such news does not exactly bode well for the common
man.
What would be better is if this new
regulation came with statements that are meant to help the average
investor in these uncertain times. In considering this, a good
start could be to publish a list of guidelines on the subject, with
Crypto firms and regulatory agencies alike, getting together to do
so.
The difficulty with such a
proposition is that figuring out how best to protect the average
investor and in connection with this, the average consumer, is the
biggest hot-button issue in the space today.
No single country has, as of yet,
quite figured out how best to answer this question. The first one
to do so will effectively become the epicenter of all Blockchain
operations, for the foreseeable future.
Whoever tries and fails to do so,
through something like over-regulation, will most likely be cut out
of said future, almost entirely.
By: BGN Editorial Staff
News:
Blockchain
Bank of
Thailand