Thailand and illegal bitcoin mining: the case west of Bangkok

According to what reported, the Thai authorities have discovered a house where illegal bitcoin mining activity was taking place, west of Bangkok.

Thai authorities have discovered a house being used for illegal bitcoin mining activities following complaints from local residents about frequent blackouts.

The raid was carried out by police and officials from the provincial electricity authorities (PEA) in the city of Ratchaburi, west of Bangkok.

According to Jamnong Chanwong, a chief security officer of the district, they found bitcoin mining facilities in the house, which was being used to run a mine and consuming large amounts of electricity without fully paying for it.

Initially, Chanwong’s team tried to enter the house but were stopped by a guard at the door. They later returned with a search warrant and found that most of the equipment had already been moved.

This is not the first case of illegal bitcoin mining being discovered in Thailand. In the province of Ratchaburi alone, this would be the fourth time this year that the authorities have carried out such a raid.

What aroused suspicion in this case were the frequent blackouts in the area. Records showed that the electricity consumption of the house was high, while the tenants had paid very little for it.

It was also discovered that the house had been rented by a company for about four months, but the power outages started in mid-July, around the time when the bitcoin mining operation likely became fully operational.

None of the tenants were arrested during the raid, according to Chanwong.

In addition to illegal bitcoin mining, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) of Thailand has introduced a strong measure to block local access to unauthorized crypto platforms.

In mid-April, a government committee decided to crack down on digital asset service providers operating in the country without local authorization, in a bid to protect local investors and curb the criminal use of cryptocurrencies, especially for money laundering.

Meanwhile, Thailand is also rolling out a regulatory sandbox for crypto services, aiming to legalize Bitcoin ETFs and introduce tax incentives for cryptocurrencies throughout 2024.

The new program, called the Digital Asset Regulatory Sandbox, is being created to foster development and innovation in the digital asset industry.

Among the service providers that will be eligible to participate in the sandbox are six categories: crypto-exchange, brokers, dealers, fund managers, advisors, and custodial wallet providers.

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