11-11-2023 (BANGKOK) The Thai government has announced a three-month delay in its flagship 10,000 baht ($280) digital money handout program, pushing the start date to May next year instead of the original target of February. The delay is attributed to the need for more time to secure funding for the populist project.
The digital cash handout plan, which was a key election promise of the ruling Pheu Thai party, was presented as an economic stimulus. However, concerns have been raised by economists regarding the potential increase in public debt and the financing of the scheme.
Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin addressed these concerns during a press conference in Bangkok on Friday, stating that the government needed to reevaluate the plan in order to maintain fiscal discipline and ensure the availability of the necessary budget. “It will take some time to implement and prepare the budget necessary for the digital wallet scheme,” he explained.
During the general election campaign earlier this year, Pheu Thai pledged that all Thai citizens aged 16 and above would be eligible for the handout. However, according to the recent announcement, individuals earning more than 70,000 baht per month or with total bank deposits exceeding 500,000 baht will not qualify for the program. As a result, the anticipated number of recipients has been reduced from 54.8 million to approximately 50 million, resulting in a decreased outlay of 48 billion baht, bringing the total budget to around 500 billion baht.
Srettha stated that the funds would be raised through loans, and the government intends to seek parliamentary approval to facilitate the borrowing. “The Juridical Council will begin drafting the law within this month, and the law should be ready for parliamentary session by January 2024,” he announced. Srettha further explained that the law should complete all parliamentary processes by May 2024, at which point the funds would be available. The government plans to allocate budgetary provisions over the next four years to repay the loans.
Emphasizing the nature of the digital wallet, Srettha clarified that it is not a cryptocurrency but rather a Thai baht-backed digital currency that will be disbursed through the Pao Tang mobile application. The Pao Tang app was originally developed during the COVID-19 pandemic as a means to distribute subsidies to low-income individuals.
