Thailand mulls overhaul of digital rules

The Thai government is planning to overhaul digital rules in the country and involve the central bank in the regulatory process. The Securities & Exchange Commission, which currently has the sole mandate to supervise the industry under the rules passed in 2018, has been asked to take the lead in the overhaul. The aim of the overhaul is to confer more powers on the central bank and tighten the oversight of platforms offering cryptocurrencies and other tokens. The market recently experienced a rout that left retail investors reeling from losses. The move also comes as authorities were criticised for not acting promptly to protect investors at Zipmex (Thailand) Ltd, a licensed cryptocurrency exchange that briefly suspended coin withdrawals.