Thailand's Supreme Court has recognised bitcoin as property under criminal law, a move that makes clearer the legal standards applied locally to holding and trading cryptocurrencies, blockchain media outlet Cryptopolitan reported on Oct. 28 local time.

The Supreme Court ruled that bitcoin can be the target of property crimes but is not legal tender.

The ruling is significant in that it set out cryptocurrency's legal character in Thailand along two lines. The court viewed as separate issues whether it is "money" that can repay debts and whether it is "property" whose price is formed and that can be held and transferred. It ruled bitcoin falls into the latter category but not the former.

The court cited a provision in the Civil and Commercial Code that recognises property rights in intangible items with possessory value. It also defined bitcoin as a market price-based means of exchange that can be converted to cash if there is a buyer. It also included as a basis for its decision the emergency decree on digital asset businesses enacted in 2018. The decree describes cryptocurrency as network-based electronic data and a means of exchange.

By contrast, Thailand's central bank does not view cryptocurrency as legal tender due to price volatility. The Supreme Court also cited that position and stated that bitcoin is "not legal tender". It ruled that while bitcoin has intrinsic value and can be bought and sold, it does not legally have the same status as money.

The ruling arose from a robbery case on Koh Samui island on Sept. 15, 2022. A group of foreigners threatened the safety of a child and then used violence against the victim and the victim's Russian wife. Under coercion, the victim converted $50,000 and 1,878,000 baht into 2.480801 bitcoin and sent it to a wallet controlled by the robbers.

The defendant was investigated for supporting the group's escape by ferry, including providing transportation and accommodation. A lower court sentenced the defendant to 15 years in prison and then reduced it to 10 years. An appeals court upheld the sentence, and the Supreme Court also found the transfer was not a voluntary transaction but the result of coercion. The court ordered the stolen bitcoin returned, or if return was not possible, payment of 1,878,000 baht.

The decision also intersects with Thailand's existing cryptocurrency policy. Thailand is relatively friendly to the use of cryptocurrency as an investment asset, but it has placed restrictions on using it as a means of payment. Thailand's Securities and Exchange Commission banned the use of cryptocurrency as legal tender on March 18, 2022. It also set penalties for violators of up to 300,000 baht in fines, plus an additional 10,000 baht per day for the violation period.

On the investment side, it eased some regulation. Thailand exempted capital gains tax on profits from cryptocurrency trading on licensed platforms from January 2025 to December 2029. In August 2025, it also began a pilot programme called TouristDigiPay to allow tourists to convert digital assets into baht to spend. Even under that system, merchants receive payment in baht, and cryptocurrency is not used directly as a means of payment.

Thailand has also recently allowed listings of spot exchange-traded funds for bitcoin and ethereum. The measure took effect on Oct. 16, 2026. The Supreme Court ruling reaffirmed Thailand's dual structure of allowing investment and productisation while not recognising legal tender status and direct payments.