Government House, “Phao Bhum” revealed that the Council of State has not yet submitted an interpretation on the use of BAAC funds to create a digital wallet because it has to wait for clear conditions. It was revealed that on July 24, the Prime Minister will hold a press conference to announce the timeline for people to register. He confirmed that the original budget framework and believes that there will be no budget problems.
Mr. Paopum Rojanasakul, Deputy Minister of Finance, gave an interview about the progress of the use of money from the Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives (BAAC) to carry out the 10,000 baht top-up project via digital wallets. When will it be sent to the Office of the Council of State for interpretation? He said that the sending must be done as a package, and all conditions must be clear. It must be sent in a lump sum and interpreted as a lump sum. It cannot be sent to ask in a vague manner. He emphasized that everything must be completed and the BAAC will send the matt
er to us before we can ask. Everything is in the process and timeline. We just have to wait for the appropriate period, including the framework of Section 28.
Mr. Pao Bhumi stated that the timeline is clear: on July 10, there will be a meeting of the Digital Wallet Regulatory Subcommittee to conclude all conditions and submit them to the main committee chaired by Prime Minister Settha Thavisin on Monday, July 15. Then, on
July 24, in the morning, the Prime Minister will make an announcement about opening registration and identity verification, with all the details on that day. On July 30, the matter will be submitted to the Cabinet again before registration, and the process of asking for opinions from the Council of State will be after that.
Mr. Pao Bhum confirmed that the original budget framework of 500 billion baht will be used. Nothing has changed. Everything is in the process. Both the 2025 budget that is in the committee level is moving forward without any problems. The additional 2024 budget will be
submitted to the parliament on July 17. As for Plan 2 or Plan 3, if the Council of State interprets that the use of BAAC funds is illegal, that will definitely happen. But right now, we are still insisting on the original plan. And reiterate that the funds will definitely be used in the 4th quarter. The date has not been specified because we want flexibility. It will be faster than the original timeline. And the registration of shops will be in the next step.
As for the concerns of the House committee regarding the source of funds for the project, Mr. Pao Bhumi said that everything is in the process, even though the news has been disproved, which is an opinion that we must listen to, but the government is moving forward according to the time frame and budget framework. The opening of the budget framework under Section 28 has limitations in opening the budget framework and various conditions.
For products prohibited from using the project’s money, Mr. Pao Bhumi said that initially, mobile phones and electron
ic products have a high possibility of being cut. Currently, it is under consideration by the Ministry of Commerce, which is considering the appropriateness because it has expertise that this type of product will cause money to flow out of the country. It will come to the subcommittee on Wednesday. And now, registration is not open. Just let the people download the application themselves. And the Prime Minister will make a clear statement again.
As for Ms. Sirikanya Tansakul, deputy leader of the Move Forward Party and MP of the Move Forward Party, who expressed her concerns about the digital wallet project, Mr. Phao Bhumi said that it was an opinion that we had to listen to. After the government listened, it had to consider whether what we were doing was correct, in accordance with the principles and the law. If it was in accordance with the law, we would move forward and explain.
When asked about the World Bank’s assessment that this project would stimulate the economy by only 0.5-1%, Mr. Pao Bhum said th
at it was a new project, never done before, and never required money to circulate in villages or communities. The assessment of the impact on the economy varied. Therefore, the figures used in the assessment varied depending on the conditions. The prohibited goods were not yet fixed, so how could it be estimated how much it would stimulate the economy?
As for the World Bank stating that if the Digital Wallet project is not implemented, the Bank of Thailand (BOT) can reduce interest rates by another 0.25-0.5%, can they be exchanged? Mr. Pao Bhumi stated that financial measures already perform their duties. Do not tie them together in various dimensions, which have already been tied together. It is expected that the Digital Wallet project will occur this year, so the interest rate has been increased due to concerns about inflation, which has increased even though the project has not been launched. This year, inflation has not occurred, so there is a problem.
Mr. Pao Bhum confirmed that the money in the projec
t can be used within the family because it is something we want to happen. For example, a family of 5 can pool 50,000 baht and use the money to buy a cart to sell products.
Source: Thai News Agency