Thailand’s State Council issues legal opinion against country’s prime minister’s digital wallet plan

According to The Nation, Thailand’s Office of the State Council will submit a legal opinion that Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin’s government cannot pass a legislative bill to fund the 500 billion baht ($14.4 billion) digital wallet plan. If there is an urgent need to stimulate the economy, the government should issue an executive order rather than pass a bill to borrow the funds, an anonymous source familiar with the matter said at the Council of State. That a bill would take months to implement is a sign that the economic situation is not dire. Srettha previously said that Thailand's economy is in crisis and needs a boost to end the cycle of low single-digit growth. The digital cash handout, seen as a major stimulus to boost growth, aims to give 10,000 baht to each of about 50 million Thais as a one-time measure to stimulate consumption and business activity. It is reported that the airdrop will use a state-issued token instead of existing digital assets or cryptocurrencies, and sellers can exchange it for cash at designated banks. (Bloomberg)