Thailand’s New ICO Rules: Easier Knowledge Tests and Stricter Risk Screening

Thailand will relax rules for token investors but tighten risk screening. Investors will no longer have to take mandatory knowledge retests every three months. The public comment period for the new rules will last until August 1, 2025. Thailand's Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has revealed a proposal to update the regulation of initial digital token offerings (ICOs), aiming to reduce the burden on investors and platforms, and to improve compliance with international standards. According to the statement, the most important aspect is the elimination of mandatory knowledge retesting every three months for investors who have already passed the test. This change will make it much easier for ordinary investors, who previously had to take the test every quarter before investing in tokens, to participate in the market. At the same time, the new rules introduce mandatory suitability testing for all retail investors in digital tokens, regardless of their experience. Such assessments will determine whether an investor’s risk tolerance matches the product’s risk level. The SEC specified that these tests must now be updated at least every two years, replacing the current three-month requirement. “This proposal aims to reduce the burden on both ICO portals and investors by eliminating the need to undergo an assessment every three months,” the regulator said. Blockon Ventures founder and Thai Blockchain Week 2019 organizer Jagdish Pandya commented: “The proposed knowledge and compliance tests will help deter ‘amateur investors’ from blindly jumping into ICOs and repeating the mistakes of the fraudulent token sale era.” Pandya also noted that Thailand is ahead of other countries in the region in regulating the crypto market: “Their ICO platform allows legal fundraising—and this is already a benchmark ahead of even the UAE or Hong Kong.” Under the updated rules, institutional and professional investors remain exempt from such tests. This approach seeks to balance the liberalization of conditions for experienced market participants with the protection of less-experienced retail investors. Public discussions on the new rules are open until August 1, 2025. The regulator encourages interested parties to submit comments that may influence the final version.