Major banks in Thailand — including Krungsri Bank, Bangkok Bank, Kasikorn Bank, Krungthai Bank, Siam Commercial Bank, and TMB — have jointly introduced the Blockchain Community Initiative (Thailand) Co. Ltd. or BCI.
Blockchain Platform to Issue Electronic Letter of Guarantee The joint initiative’s first goal is to shorten the timeframe in which letters of guarantee (LGs) are issued, which presently take up to seven days. With blockchain, the process can be streamlined, offering greater ease of doing business for companies.
Each year, over 500,000 LGs are issued, worth a combined 1.35 trillion baht. According to Blognone, the banks expect that BCI will be able to accommodate up to 50% of all LG issuances within the next three years.
Thakorn Piyapan, Head of Digital Banking at Krungsri Bank, revealed that the banks will share a common node as well as a web portal dedicated to LG services. The system will be operational in June and fall under the jurisdiction of the Bank of Thailand’s regulatory sandbox. Sharpening the Nation’s Competitive Edge with Blockchain
According to the official statement, 22 Thai and international banks had joined to establish the blockchain network with the aim of offering LGs, thereby enhancing the country’s competitive advantage and mobilizing the economy.
Veerathai Santiprabhob, Governor of the Bank of Thailand, revealed that this initiative was founded with the goal of increasing cooperation and expanding the blockchain community in the country to serve more businesses across different industries.
“Blockchain technology will help to increase the overall competitiveness of the Thai economy,” Veerathai said. “We hope that the BCI will encourage more adoption of blockchain technology for stakeholders.”