Daily cash transactions of B5m or more subject to scrutiny

The Bank of Thailand has ordered financial institutions to thoroughly check daily cash transactions totalling 5 million baht or more at their brick-and-mortar branches from Nov 1.

The BoT said on Monday it had ordered enhanced due diligence to prevent these branches and accounts being used for criminal purposes.

The requirement, effective Nov 1, applied to deposits of 5 million baht or more in cash on the same day at physical branches. Financial institutions must check the source of the cash and the purpose of the deposit, and examine the customer's documents.

The same requirement also applied to the exchange of Thai baht banknotes, the purchase of cheques or drafts, foreign currency exchange, insurance payments, investment products and derivatives.

Financial institutions were duty-bound to report any suspicious transactions to the BoT.

The central bank said the measure would not apply to electronic transactions.