Thailand backs down to crypto backlash, won’t tax transactions at 15%

Countries are starting to get serious about how they are planning to tax cryptocurrency gains. Neither this post nor any other on cryptofal.com should be taken as financial advice. It is not.

Tax season is not a fun time for anyone especially for those on the crypto side as they have to figure out what a taxable transaction is and what is not. Thailand was planning on taxing crypto transactions at a rate of 15%. Those plans have been dropped due to investors’ pushing back.

There is still time for stakeholders to comment on the proposal but it is expected to be passed without the flat 15% tax. The people preparing the reports say that traders can report their crypto gains from trading or mining as regular capital gains. The reason we are seeing this plan get dropped is for similar concerns that people have about the 30% tax in India.

Some crypto insiders were in the government’s ear saying that a 15% tax was too high and would hinder the growth of the market. It is also good to see that a government is willing to listen to its people. 15% may deter smaller retail investors but the broader community of traders and institutions would not be stopped by that flat rate.

A reason for this change could be because of their past financial crisis. This was kept in mind when securities watchdog banned exchanges from listing meme coins like Doge and Shib. Citizens of the country are in the know about Bitcoin according to a survey of Thai residents. The report showed that 88% of Thai residents had at least heard of Bitcoin and 42% have interest in investing within the following year.

We need more countries to be taking this approach where they actually listen to people in the country who have a better idea of what the space needs. There needs to be more of a middle ground that benefits both the government of the country and the people.