Anti Money Laundering (AML) in Thailand

Money laundering in Thailand is a prominent issue because the country is vulnerable to cross-border crime. Although some adjustments could be made to strengthen current legislation, Thailand successfully maintains an Anti Money Laundering (AML) regime.

The majority of reported money laundering cases are narcotics-related. Money launderers in Thailand use banking and non-banking financial institutions and private businesses to move funds from narcotics trafficking and other criminal enterprises.

Thailand’s AML policy, the Anti-Money Laundering Act (AMLA) B.E. 2542 (1999), criminalizes money laundering for the following predicate offenses: narcotics trafficking, trafficking in women or children for sexual purposes, fraud, financial institution fraud, public corruption, customs evasion, extortion, public fraud, blackmail, and terrorist activity.

On August 11, 2003, the Royal Thai Government issued a decree which amended Section 135 of the Penal Code to establish terrorism as a criminal offense. The second Decree amended Section 3 of the AMLA to add the newly established offense of terrorism and terrorist financing as an eighth predicate offense for money laundering.

The AMLA created the Anti Money Laundering Office (AMLO), Thailand’s Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU), which became fully operational in 2001. AMLO receives, analyzes and processes suspicious and large transaction reports, as required by the AMLA.

The AMLA requires customer identification, recordkeeping, the reporting of large and suspicious transactions, and provides for the civil forfeiture of property involved in a money laundering offense. Financial institutions are also required to keep customer identification and specific transaction records for a period of five years from the date the account was closed, or from the date the transaction occurred, whichever is longer.

The Economy of Thailand

Thailand recovered from the 1997-1998 Asian Financial Crisis and was one of East Asia's best economic performers from 2002-2004. Bolstered by strong export growth, the Thai economy grew 4.5% in 2007. In an effort to maintain this high growth rate and to stimulate the country’s exports, Bangkok has pursued preferential trade agreements with a variety of partners.

In 2004, the Indian Ocean Earthquake resulted in a tsunami that crippled Thailand. However, by 2007, the tourism sector had largely recovered.

Economic growth in 2007 was due almost entirely do to robust export performance - despite the pressure of an appreciating currency. Exports have performed at record levels, rising nearly 17% in 2006 and 12% in 2007. Export-oriented manufacturing, in particular automobile production and farm output continue to drive these gains.

Banking in Thailand

The Bank of Thailand (BOT) serves as the Central Bank.

Established in 1947, the BOT’s main goal is to provide a secure financial environment for continual economic growth in order to achieve improvement in the standard of living for the people of Thailand.

The BOT is responsible for printing and issuing banknotes, promoting monetary stability, establishing monetary policies and maintaining Thailand’s foreign exchange rate.

Thailand's Currency

The currency in Thailand is the baht (THB), which is divided into units of 100 stang. Coins are issued in copper with denominations of 25 and 50 stang. Silver coins are issued in denominations of 1, 5 and 10 THB. In addition, banknotes are available in denominations of 10, 20, 50, 100, 500 and 1,000 THB.

Other Key Statistics of Thailand

Time Zone: UTC+7 (12 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time).

Location: Southeastern Asia, bordering the Andaman Sea and the Gulf of Thailand, southeast of Burma.

Population: 65,493,296 (July 2008 est.).

Labor Force: Approximately 49% work in agriculture, 43.8% in industry and 44.8% in services industries. The unemployment rate is 1.4%.

Languages Spoken: Thai is the official language of Thailand, and English is often considered the secondary language of the elite.

Trade Organizations: Thailand is a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO) and the United Nations (UN).