Thailand is rewriting its stock exchange rules to trap billions in Bitcoin ETF wealth strictly inside its own borders

Thailand is proposing a crypto exchange-traded fund (ETF) framework that would give domestic fund managers, the Stock Exchange of Thailand and locally regulated custodians a structural advantage as the country opens the market to Bitcoin and Ethereum products.

On Aug. 24, Thailand's Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) opened public comment on rules that would initially allow passive, single-asset funds focused on Bitcoin or Ethereum. Each fund would need to maintain an average net exposure of at least 80% of net asset value to its chosen asset over an accounting year.

The proposed products would enter a market already validated by the success of crypto ETFs in the United States, where funds have attracted more than $60 billion in net inflows since launch.

Bitcoin ETFs dominate with about $54 billion, followed by Ethereum products with roughly $12 billion, while newer crypto ETF offerings account for the balance.

Thailand’s proposal would bring that model onshore while keeping much of the first-wave value chain inside the country.

Local Thai firms would get the first advantage

Locally established crypto ETFs would trade only on the Stock Exchange of Thailand, while their assets would initially need to be held primarily by digital-asset custodians regulated by the Thai SEC.