Panoramic view of Thailand's payment industry chain

Below is a panoramic view of the payment industry chain in Thailand and an analysis of key links to help you quickly grasp the core structure of the country's payment ecosystem:

I. Panoramic view of the payment industry chain in Thailand

graph TD

    A[consumer] --> |payment instrument| B(front-end service provider)

    B --> C {clearance network}

    C --> D [financial institutions]

    D --> E [merchants/service providers]

    F [Regulator] -. ->|policy making| C & D

II. Analysis of core participants

  1. regulatory layer

    • Bank of Thailand (BOT): Issues licences (e.g. "Payment System Operator"), supervises e-money and cross-border payments.
    • Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC): regulates digital asset-related payments.
    • Key legislation: Payment Systems Act 2017

  2. Banks and financial institutions

    • Local giants: Kasikornbank (KBank), SCB, Bangkok Bank
    • Foreign banks: CitiBank HSBC (corporate focus)
    • special role: National electronic money transfer system "PromptPay" (instant money transfer infrastructure)

  3. Third Party Payment Service Providers
    | Types | Representative Companies | Features |
    |————–|——————————|—————————–|
    | Local Wallet | TrueMoney Wallet, Rabbit LINE Pay | LINE Pay users over 50% penetration |
    | International Players | Alipay+, WeChat Pay | Mainly for Chinese Travellers |

  4. Card organisations and clearing networks

  • Visa/Mastercard/JCB: covering the credit card scenario
  • National Interbank Transaction Management and Exchange (NITMX): a local clearing hub

  1. Merchant-side infrastructure
  • PSPs: Omise, 2C2P
  • POS Terminal: Verifone Thailand

6.Technical support layer
- Blockchain Application: Siam Commercial Bank's Ripple Cross-Border Settlement
- Anti-fraud: AML solutions from Refinitiv

III. Featured Business Model Cases

1.PromptPay + QR Code Connectivity
Zero-fee P2P transfers via Citizen ID/mobile phone number binding, with average daily transaction volume exceeding 30 million.

2.711 Convenience Store Cash Recharge Network
The 14,000 711s across Thailand support offline replenishment of e-wallets, solving the problem of depositing funds for people without bank accounts.

3.GrabThailand Super App Mode.
Integration of GrabPay + F&B takeaway + taxi to form a closed consumer ecosystem.

IV. A snapshot of key data for 2023
- Digital Payment Penetration:68% (e-Conomy SEA2023 Report)
- Percentage of transactions processed by non-banking institutions:41%
- Number of e-Money Licence Holders:27

V. Analysis of the Deep Expansion of the Payment Industry Chain in Thailand

1. Cross-border payments and exchange controls

  • Key mechanisms::

    • Bank of Thailand implements declaration system for cross-border financial flows (over US$50,000 to be reported)
    • Primary access:
      • SWIFT (traditional bank wire transfer)
      • RippleNet (blockchain solution adopted by banks such as SCB to reduce the cost of intra-ASEAN remittances 30%)

  • Popular Service Providers::
    | Business | Target Groups | Rate Advantages |
    |——————–|—————————|———————–|
    | DeeMoney | Labour Remittance (Myanmar/Cambodia) | <1% Handling Charges |
    2C2P |Cross-border e-commerce collection support Alipay + Currency Direct|

2. B2B payment innovation

  • Supply Chain Finance Tools::

    • KBank's 'K Biz Loan': Credit granted based on corporate transaction flow data
    • SCB's "Smart Invoice": AR Auto Reconciliation + Dynamic Discounting

  • Virtual Account Solutions:
    Bangkok Bank offers 'Virtual Account Pooling' to help e-commerce platforms split accounts more efficiently 60%

3.Regulatory Sandbox Update
2023 Pilot Project:
- CBDC retail version test (Phase3): validation of 10 million baht scale spending completed on platforms such as Lazada
- Stablecoin Compliance:Tether (USDT) Has SEC Approval for Limited Scenario Use

VI. Mapping of market segment opportunities

pie 

    title TOP High Growth Scenarios (2024 Forecast)

    "Social e-commerce payments" :35%

    Cross-border Travel Settlement":28%

    Motorbike Rental Micropayments":18%

    Temple Electronic Merit Box":12%

VII. Early warning of risks and challenges
1. 'Localised variations of fraud patterns'
- Case: QR code phishing scam utilising Buddhist fundraising techniques (+217%YoY)
2. Infrastructure Disconnect
27% merchants in rural areas still rely on cash registers

Do you need to continue to develop a specific link? For example:

  1. PromptPay Technology Architecture Explained
  2. Grab vs Line Pay's ecological competition
  3. CBDC Test Phase Business Impact Assessment