Authorities and regulators are stepping up efforts to prevent financial fraud, especially online scams, with measures ranging from plugging legal loopholes to the use of advanced technology.
Plugging loopholes
Last week Finance Minister Arkhom Termpittayapaisith instructed the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Bank of Thailand to examine any legal loopholes to prevent another foreign currency exchange Ponzi scheme from happening.
He said the Forex-3D foreign exchange group case, which allegedly cheated thousands of victims out of 2 billion baht, illuminates the legal loopholes that have to be reviewed.
The Department of Special Investigation (DSI) opened a channel for people to file complaints in the Forex-3D case in late 2019, before the case reached the spotlight recently when some celebrities were found to have allegedly had roles in the scam.
Mr Arkhom said neither the SEC nor the central bank have ignored the Forex-3D case, but are examining the legal aspects and alerting the public to the dangers.
However, this case does not fall under the supervision of the SEC as prescribed by Thai law, he said.
In a statement issued last week, the SEC explained it has no authority to supervise…