Thailand Approves Tether and Circle Stablecoins for Regulated Trading

Thailand’s financial regulator has granted approval for the use of Tether’s USDt and Circle’s USDC in cryptocurrency trading, allowing them to be listed on licensed exchanges.

This decision follows recent regulatory adjustments aimed at integrating stablecoins into the country’s financial ecosystem.

The move comes as Thailand continues to explore ways to legitimize digital assets. Last year, the government introduced a regulatory sandbox to test cryptocurrency applications, signaling a broader push for adoption. With this approval, USDt and USDC join a select group of cryptocurrencies permitted for trading, which includes Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP, and XLM.

Tether confirmed on March 10 that this approval will facilitate the use of USDt in digital asset businesses and as a payment option within the country.

Beyond trading, stablecoins are increasingly being used as an alternative to traditional remittance services, particularly in developing economies. Reports indicate that in some regions, they can reduce remittance costs by as much as 60% compared to conventional methods.

Despite their rapid adoption, stablecoins remain a small fraction of the global payments market. Data from December showed 28.5 million unique users conducting over 600 million stablecoin transactions—still a drop in the ocean compared to traditional financial systems.