Interconnection of Real-Time Money Transfer System between Thailand and Singapore
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Interconnection of Real-Time Money Transfer System between Thailand and Singapore
12 July 2021
One Asia Lawyers Thailand Office
1 Introduction
On 29 April, 2021, the Central Bank of Thailand and the Monetary Authority of Singapore
announced the launch of a real-time digital money transfer system linkage between
Thailand’s PromptPay and Singapore’s PayNow. This will make it possible to send money
between Thailand and Singapore in just a few minutes using a smartphone banking
application as long as you have the phone number of the person you are sending the money
to, making it the first of its kind in the world.
2 What are “PromptPay” and “Paynow”?
In Thailand, more than 40 million accounts are reported to have been connected to the
PromptPay service since its introduction in June 2016. In Thailand, more than 40 million
accounts are reported to be connected to the PromptPay service since its introduction in
June 2016. Those who wish to use the service will need to apply for registration for
PromptPay or PayNow at the partner banks1 in their respective countries, but once the registration is completed, there will be no need to enter the recipient’s name or bank
account information when sending money.
3 Remittance fees and maximum remittance amount
The fee for remittances from Thailand to Singapore using PromptPay is THB 75 per
transaction until 31 July 2021, and THB 150 per transaction after 01 August 2021.
The maximum remittance amount to Singapore is SGD1,000 per day (there is no limit to
the number of remittances as long as the total remittance amount per day is below the
limit), and the maximum amount of remittances that can be received in Thailand is
4 Remittance to an account in the same name
Thai nationals are not allowed to transfer funds between their own account in Thailand
and their own account in Singapore, but there is no provision for foreigners to do so.
Therefore, it is possible for foreign nationals to use this service to transfer their own funds
between Thailand and Singapore.
5 Conclusion
The Central Bank of Thailand is not only collaborating with Singapore, but is also
strengthening its digital payment system with other ASEAN countries. QR code payments
are currently available with Cambodia, Vietnam, Japan, and Laos, with Indonesia and
Malaysia to follow soon. Currently, QR code payment has not been introduced for
remittance between Thailand and Singapore, but it is necessary to continue to monitor the
trend.
1 According to the Q&A released by BOT on 29 April, 2021, the partner banks in Thailand that can use this digital money transfer system are Bangkok Bank, Krungthai Bank, Kasikorn Bank, and Siam Commercial Bank, and the partner banks in Singapore are DBS Bank, OCBC Bank, and UOB Bank.
THB25,000 per remittance (multiple remittances can be received from multiple senders).
The maximum amount is expected to be increased in the future.
