Transcript of the above video: 

As the title of this video suggests, we are discussing this "Bitcoin to Baht Scheme" and how in my mind, this is just trying to roll out this Digital Wallet totalitarian token scheme under a different guise. I thought of making this video after reading a recent article in the Bangkok Post, bangkokpost.com, the article is titled: Bitcoin to Baht: digital assets sandbox in offing for foreign tourists.

Let me be clear, I have talked about Bitcoin in the past. I much like Dave Collum - he's a commenter kind of a Twitter guy, I think he's going to have an interview with Tucker Carlson airing relatively soon, but he does a lot of podcasts; he is also a Professor of Organic Chemistry at Cornell University, - he talks about Bitcoin in much the same vein as I talk about it which is there is something to it but I don't exactly understand everything about it and for that reason, I'm not this gung-ho person that bitcoin's going to save the world. I'm not anti-Bitcoin. I think that there are a lot of promising things about it, but I am not one of those folks that is just sort of gung-ho about every aspect of it. 

Now that said, I also want to be clear though, this video is not here to criticize anything to do with Bitcoin per se, it's this mechanism for changing over Bitcoin into Baht to use it here in Thailand that has me very concerned. I get into some deeper dive sort of analysis on this stuff in our paid news service. For those who are interested in that, you can email us, [email protected], where we get into the ins and outs of expat land, different things like this; payment options, banking, taxation how it all impacts the average expat here in Thailand and greater Southeast Asia. Also while I'm talking my book, as I have discussed in other videos, my better half and I set up a restaurant here in downtown Bangkok, Pancake Palace. As the name implies, it is breakfast anytime as well as American Diner style food. For folks who are interested in that kind of dining, there are links in the description below to find us, so come on down and see us at Pancake Palace sometime. 

That said, let's get into this. Again bangkokpost.com: Bitcoin to Baht article. Quoting directly: "The Government's latest initiative allowing foreign tourists to convert digital assets into Baht for spending during their time in the country is expected to boost foreign tourist spending by an additional 10%, says Finance Minister Pichai Chunhavajira. Speaking after the launch of the TouristDigiPay scheme, Mr. Pichai said the initiative, which is scheduled to operate as a nationwide sandbox, will enable foreign tourists visiting Thailand to convert their digital assets into Baht and use them via the country's e-money system." I didn't know we had an e-money system. Quoting further: "Thailand is likely to be the first country in the world to implement this feature, he said, adding that tourists would be able to make purchases at a range of businesses from small shops to large retailers." Again sounding a lot like that Digital Wallet. Quoting further: "If the pilot phase proceeds smoothly, these limits may be increased in the future, said Mr. Pichai." So notice, it's going to be constricted but they may allow it to be expanded, so it is totalitarian to begin with from its inception.

As we talked about in 2023, when this now more Rump Coalition Government first came in, the first thing they rolled out was the so-called Digital Wallet which was going to be a handout, but what it did was impose a digital monetary system of a completely totalitarian nature that would track, trace every transaction, the money could be turned on and off, it could only be used within a certain perimeter and it could only be used to buy certain things. That's what this whole thing is sounding like to me. That said, quoting further: " Finance Permanent Secretary Lavaron Sangsnit said the project will not be limited to any specific area but will be available nationwide with only the spending limits being restricted."

Quoting further: "Foreign tourists wishing to convert digital assets into Baht to pay for goods and services in Thailand would be required to complete Know Your Customer procedures." It's just this constant nanny state. They don't want you to even be able to use your own little pocket money privately. Quoting further: "To open an account with a digital asset service provider and create a tourist wallet with an e-money provider. The digital assets would then be transferred into the wallet linked to the regulated digital asset provider, where they will be converted into baht and could be used for spending within the country." How about you just convert your own money using one of these exchange places and just use cash? You have got to interact with this; the knee bone connects to the foot bone, to the hip bone, to the this, that and the other thing in order to just walk around and spend a little money in Thailand? This is ridiculous totalitarian nonsense; it's absurd in the level of complexity for what can be heretofore simple transactions. Quoting further: "For general merchants accepting payments via the tourist wallet, the process would be almost identical to Thai consumers using such e-wallets today. Ms. Pornanong added that the tourist wallet spending limits would be set at 50,000 baht a month" - so you can only use 50,000 Baht a month. Interesting. Haven't we heard recently that now most of the digital banking platforms are doing everything in their power to make it incredibly difficult to move around money more than 50,000 Baht per month? Where did we hear that? Why? To what end?

It's destroying the economy here; because the liquidity, the velocity of money is being slowed down and we are watching it just suck up the liquidity in the economy and we're just seeing it become moribund. I mean you can just look outside, it's immediately apparent. That said, quoting further: "For small merchants and up to 500,000 Baht a month for merchants that complete Know Your Merchant procedures, totalling a maximum of 550,000 Baht." Why would you even use this? The max you can make, they have a set max from the get-go as a merchant, how much you can make off of this thing. Quoting further: "This means that foreign tourists could exchange digital assets for bot in the e-wallet up to 550,000 Baht, she added."

Again, this isn't a critique on bitcoin itself. It's just hey let's create this totalitarian system that will place all of these extra obstacles, roadblocks, annoying little processes you have to go through to “know your customer” in order to undertake basic financial transactions here in the Kingdom of Thailand.