 | A few months ago Malaysia’s financial authority released a regulation for digital investing in the country, positioning the country as the first in Southeast Asia to take concrete action on the matter. Although the online investing market in the area has still limited dimensions, especially compared to other world regions, local authorities and other relevant stakeholders believe that this new financial tool has a great potential for their economies. The activity in the area confirms it: during the first Crowdfunding Asia Conference, the head of Thai Securities and Exchange Commission announced that a regulation for crowdinvesting would be released during the present year. |
Although details of the regulations are still unknown, as it is work in progress, the chief of the Thai Securities and Exchange Commission stated that it would regulate platforms in order to reduce the risk of fraud and pose limits on investments from non accredited investors. These tiny anticipations so far closely follow what has been done in other countries and in nearby Malaysia.
Thailand’s online investing scene is still limited to a few players - mainly reward crowdfunding platforms with the exception of a handful of digital investing portals. Perhaps the local Securities and Authorities Commission’s intervention, aiming also at educating the market on the subject, gives a further push to the growth and establishment of the industry. Indeed, when looking at Malaysia’s case, after the rules were published, an increasing number of actors started getting equipped to enter the market, as it was also observed by Crowd Valley which saw an increase of services requests coming from potential customers in the region. However, it is still far from being a fully functioning and well established market, especially because rules were published only a few months ago.
Given that in the ASEAN region, micro-businesses and SMEs represent 99% of all business, generate 56% to 97% of employment, contribute anywhere from 30% to 60% of gross domestic product and 19% to 31% of exports in the economies of ASEAN member state, but still they are chronically underserved by banks and other large financial institutions, online investing and peer to peer marketplaces have a huge potential here. We’ll see if the prompt intervention of the local financial authorities indeed accelerates the growth of this funding model.
References
Polkuamdee, N. (2015). Regulator gives nod to crowdfunding. Bangkok Post
Hobey, E. (2015).Thai Regulator Finalizes Crowdfunding Rules: SEC Secretary General Vorapol Socatiyanurak Comments. Crowdfundinsider
Image credit to: Eustaquio Santimano http://bit.ly/17ghShj
Thailand’s online investing scene is still limited to a few players - mainly reward crowdfunding platforms with the exception of a handful of digital investing portals. Perhaps the local Securities and Authorities Commission’s intervention, aiming also at educating the market on the subject, gives a further push to the growth and establishment of the industry. Indeed, when looking at Malaysia’s case, after the rules were published, an increasing number of actors started getting equipped to enter the market, as it was also observed by Crowd Valley which saw an increase of services requests coming from potential customers in the region. However, it is still far from being a fully functioning and well established market, especially because rules were published only a few months ago.
Given that in the ASEAN region, micro-businesses and SMEs represent 99% of all business, generate 56% to 97% of employment, contribute anywhere from 30% to 60% of gross domestic product and 19% to 31% of exports in the economies of ASEAN member state, but still they are chronically underserved by banks and other large financial institutions, online investing and peer to peer marketplaces have a huge potential here. We’ll see if the prompt intervention of the local financial authorities indeed accelerates the growth of this funding model.
References
Polkuamdee, N. (2015). Regulator gives nod to crowdfunding. Bangkok Post
Hobey, E. (2015).Thai Regulator Finalizes Crowdfunding Rules: SEC Secretary General Vorapol Socatiyanurak Comments. Crowdfundinsider
Image credit to: Eustaquio Santimano http://bit.ly/17ghShj
 | About the author - Irene Tordera Born and raised in Milan, Italy, Irene is an International Business graduate, with a strong interest for innovative ideas that can simplify our lives. During her studies, she co-founded an online community for sportspeople and worked in marketing positions at Ogilvy & Mather Advertising and at the European Business Angel Network, in Brussels. She is a passionate blogger about crowdfunding and the startup ecosystem. |
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