Thailand Considers Opening Door Wider To Crypto Futures In Licensing Revamp

Kraken and Coinbase moved first. Both crypto exchanges rolled out perpetual futures tied to equities for non-US users earlier this year, part of a broader push toward round-the-clock, multi-asset trading. Now Thailand is adjusting its own rulebook to keep pace.

A Shift In How Licenses Are Granted

Thailand’s Securities and Exchange Commission has put forward a proposal that would allow licensed digital asset companies to apply for derivatives licenses directly, without having to set up entirely separate legal entities.

The change, now open for public comment, is part of a wider licensing revamp aimed at making it easier for crypto firms to offer futures products to retail investors. The consultation period closes May 20.

Under current rules, a crypto company that wants to offer derivatives must establish a new entity — a requirement that adds time, cost, and complexity. The proposed revision would remove that hurdle.

Companies would still need to meet additional requirements tied to conflict-of-interest management and regulatory oversight, but the structural barrier to entry would be gone.

The SEC said the changes are designed to give investors more tools for managing risk and building out their portfolios.

Global Push Behind The Proposal

Thailand’s move comes as momentum behind crypto derivatives builds across multiple markets. On Tuesday, Blockchain.com launched perpetual futures trading inside its self-custody wallet, allowing users to take leveraged positions using Bitcoin as collateral without moving funds to a third-party exchange.

The product, built on the Hyperliquid network, gives access to more than 190 markets with leverage of up to 40x.

In the US, regulatory movement is also underway. A senior official at the Commodity Futures Trading Commission said recently that the agency is working toward enabling crypto perpetual futures and could act within weeks.

Exchanges aren’t waiting. Kraken’s parent company, Payward, recently agreed to acquire Bitnomial, a US-regulated derivatives venue, with an eye toward giving American clients access to perpetual futures products once approvals come through.

Bringing Standards In Line With Global Norms

Thailand’s SEC said the proposed rules would align its derivatives exchanges and clearing houses with international standards — a detail that points to longer-term ambitions beyond just opening up licensing.

Earlier this year, the regulator also put forward separate proposals for tighter scrutiny of the funders behind crypto firms, signaling that the broader push to expand the market comes alongside a tightening of oversight at multiple levels. The licensing revamp sits within that same pattern: wider access, stricter controls.

Whether the final rules reflect that balance will depend, in part, on what the industry submits before the May 20 deadline.

Featured image from Meta, chart from TradingView