Thailand’s Securities and Exchange Commission published guidelines on Thursday permitting domestic asset management companies to establish bitcoin and ether exchange-traded funds, introducing a regulated pathway for market participants to access cryptocurrency through the national stock exchange.
These regulations take effect on Oct. 16. Cryptocurrency exchange-traded funds must list on the Stock Exchange of Thailand and follow a single digital asset, requiring at least 80% of a fund’s net asset value to maintain exposure to that specific coin. The regulator specified that bitcoin and ether will serve as the sole eligible cryptocurrencies at launch.
Purchasers must formally acknowledge associated risks prior to acquisition. Financial intermediaries are prohibited from extending credit to clients for digital asset purchases, and the underlying coin reserves must reside with custodians authorized by Thailand’s regulatory agency.
This update provides Thai traders with a domestic exchange-traded fund alternative instead of depending on offshore vehicles or direct digital asset trading. Previously, Thailand restricted investments in foreign crypto exchange-traded funds strictly to institutional buyers and high-net-worth individuals, while the agency announced last year its intention to expand the market beyond bitcoin.
Thai asset management firms may delegate cryptocurrency investment operations to licensed digital asset portfolio managers. Approved digital asset custodians alongside other qualified entities can likewise register to act as fund supervisors for these crypto exchange-traded funds.
Furthermore, the regulatory body adjusted its policies to allow mutual funds and private portfolios to invest in domestic cryptocurrency exchange-traded funds, subject to existing capital allocation restrictions. During the initial rollout, the agency will prohibit instruments that provide retail clients with indirect access to overseas cryptocurrency exchange-traded funds, such as depositary receipts.
This framework integrates bitcoin and ether directly into Thailand’s traditional fund and market infrastructure while incorporating heightened custody, reporting, and investor appropriateness protections. The move builds upon the regulator’s 2025 strategy to broaden its exchange-traded fund selection past bitcoin.
Reports indicate that Thailand boasts the highest proportion of cryptocurrency users globally on a per capita basis at 20%, surpassing the United States at 13%. This figure also exceeds Nigeria, the Philippines, and South Africa, which each report approximately 19.4% cryptocurrency adoption, according to World.
Originally published at https://www.coindesk.com/policy/2026/10/09/thailand-opens-door-to-locally-listed-bitcoin-and-ether-etfs.
