Page 80 - Q26 - 0

¥ÿ≈æ“À

However, although virtual currency is not a legal tender under the

Currency Act of Thailand, for both parties, an obligation can be extinguished
if the creditor accepts a virtual currency for payment transactions instead of

the official one.

In addition, rather than defining virtual currency as money or currency,

authorities in a number of jurisdictions generally define it as a digital
representation of value that can be used as an alternative to real money or

(16)
fiat currency.

In this regard, as Libra coin is a stablecoin whose main functions and

features are similar to other types of virtual currencies, Libra coin cannot

therefore be considered a legal tender under the Currency Act of Thailand.

4.2.1.2 The Exchange Control Act B.E. 2485 (1942)

Furthermore, it is worth analysing whether or not virtual currency falls

within the scope of the Exchange Control Act of Thailand. Section 3 of the
Act on Exchange Control B.E. 2485 defines çforeign currencyé as being legal

tender in any country other than Thailand. It is worth noting that the Act does

not provide a clear-cut definition of çforeign currencyé, as it is not limited to
the forms of currency provided for in the aforementioned Currency Act of

Thailand. However, from Section 3, to date, no legislation in any jurisdiction

has ensured the legal tender status of virtual currencies. Accordingly, virtual

currency is not classified as foreign currency under the Act.

(16)
Virtual currency schemes - a further analysis, European Central Bank, <https://www.ecb.europa.
eu/pub/pdf/other/virtualcurrencyschemesen.pdf> accessed 1 December, 2019.

¡°√“§¡ - ‡¡…“¬π ÚıˆÛ 69