- Thailand created a plan to issue government bonds and make them available to those interested in investing.
- The plan involves selling the bonds via the blockchain-based e-wallet, which will reduce their face value.
- The new face value of the bonds is 1 baht each, and the government aims to issue 200 million of them.
Thailand Ministry of Finance’s Public Debt Management Office (PDMO) recently revealed plans to sell $6.42 million (200 million baht) in savings bonds. However, they also plan to do it by using blockchain technology.
Using the blockchain to sell savings bonds
The statement was published yesterday, June 16th, on the Ministry’s website. The new announcement says that bonds have an extremely low face value — only 1 baht each, which is approximately $0.032.
The bonds would also be sold via a blockchain wallet owned by the country’s Krung Thai Bank. Furthermore, according to the announcement, the distribution of the bonds via the wallet is the latest step towards increasing the efficiency of the government system.
Not only that, but it will also represent an investment in the true digital economy.
Reducing the face value of bonds
A local media outlet, Bangkok Post, reported of the move, as well. The report notes that the use of blockchain in this way allows the debt office to reduce the bonds’ face value.
Meanwhile, the PDMO Director General, Patricia Mongkhovanit, commented on the move by saying: “With the blockchain system, PDMO can break up the amount of the savings bond face value to as low as 1 baht from the regular 1,000 baht.”
Another interesting detail noted by the Ministry of Finance is that 200 million baht bond issue is only a pilot project. Its goal is to improve the financial inclusion, simply by making it easier for anyone who might be interested to subscribe to the bonds issued by the Thailand government. The bonds themselves, of course, come with an annual interest rate of 1.70%. They also have a maturity period, which will last for the next three years.