The Thai Pakdee Party has announced a plan to cancel the 1,000 and 500 baht banknotes throughout Thailand. This move aims to combat corruption and disrupt illicit cash flows. Warong Dechgitvigrom, the party leader, shared this anti-corruption policy on Facebook, asserting these notes enable grey money operations to disguise illegal wealth.

 

Warong believes eliminating these notes will restrict corrupt networks from using physical cash for storing, transferring, and paying bribes, which are difficult to trace. Unlike digital transfers, cash transactions in large amounts leave no record, making them ideal for underhand deals. He highlighted that even though mule accounts are used to cover up such transactions, money typically ends up being withdrawn in cash.

 

Warong cited previous instances in which investigators discovered hidden cash-filled rooms in politicians' homes. He outlined a broader anti-corruption plan, including harsher penalties for financial crimes, such as the death penalty for embezzling over 100 million baht, with executions mandatory within 15 days and no royal pardon eligibility. Additionally, he proposed empowering citizens to sue corrupt officials, offering monetary rewards upon successful legal actions.

 

He assured that cancelling these notes wouldn't impact honest citizens, as most use digital banking. For elderly individuals preferring cash, smaller denominations would suffice. If implemented in the next three months, deposits of large cash sums would require declarations of the money’s source and appropriate tax payments.

 

Reactions online were mixed, with some praising the boldness of the proposal, while others questioned its practicality and potential public inconvenience. In a related development, the opposition People’s Party has begun its early election campaign with a strong anti-corruption message, as the country nears a possible snap election, reported the Thaiger.

 

 

Key Takeaways:

• Thai Pakdee wants to cancel high-denomination notes to deter corruption.
• Warong argues that these notes help hide illegal financial activities.
• Public reactions are mixed, with concerns over practicality and convenience.

 

  Adapted by ASEAN Now from The Thaiger 2025-12-26

 

 

 

6 minutes ago, webfact said:

has announced a plan to cancel

I hope this is like 47 having "a plan for healthcare." More bad than good would come from basically eliminating cash.

Yet more pushing for a digital panopticon  we should all hope this idiotic idea fails totally.

Inconveniencing 99% of the population and 100% of tourists because they can't (or won't) tackle corrupt government workers and politicians.

The corrupt police will only accept 100 Baht notes now? 

What a moronic idea.  

India did similar on 8 November 2016 when PM Modi declared that 1000 and 500 rupiah notes would become worthless at midnight.

 

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-37974423

 

The guys that refill the ATM will need to work a lot of overtime to keep them stocked with red notes.

Educationaly Sub Normal comes to mind!!

19 minutes ago, HappyExpat57 said:

I hope this is like 47 having "a plan for healthcare." More bad than good would come from basically eliminating cash.

Not quite... DT's exact words were, "I have concepts of a plan" [for healthcare].

Get rid of the silly little bronze coins first. 

I would like to see 2000 or 5000 B notes.

Or even 10k notes , still half of a 500 euro bill.

 

Won't corruption go for gold bars ?

Easier for higher values .

 

 

 

 

 

11 minutes ago, NanLaew said:

India did similar on 8 November 2016 when PM Modi declared that 1000 and 500 rupiah notes would become worthless at midnight.

 

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-37974423

 

The guys that refill the ATM will need to work a lot of overtime to keep them stocked with red notes.

Yes, but India introduced new high value notes.  And it didn't stop corruption, it was just paused for a few days, and because the corrupt politicians had to dump their old currency, they demanded more payments to replace their lost wealth.

 

Eliminate the 1000 and 500 bills, sure, no problems. Most high rolling criminals deal with bitcoins anyways. It won't affect them, only the local criminals or those that receives their tea money in a neat envelope.

 

Who it would really piss off is all the tourists who don't have a Thai bank account. Unless the have a plan to let tourists use their own countries debit card in stores, restaurents, hotels, etc. Most likely be the end of small tourist dependent operators.

The insanity never ceases.

Oh, dear.............

Another stupid idea in a long list of stupid ideas. Sounds to me more of a power grab and basically making the economy cashless, which will backfire massively, as Thailand simply won't simplify it all so that local Thais, tourists, and businesses aren't effected. Sooner or later, people the world over are going to realise that you do need cash as a backup/alternative. 

As said by others above, India tried this and it was a farcical joke and lesson in ineptitude, plus most serious criminals don't bother much with cash now, it's all crypto... much safer for them. On top of that, making the notes all plastic does throw a bit of a spanner in the works for forgers as it's harder to conterfeit the cash.

The person in this article advocating for this is doing the bidding of the financial system and banks/governments so they can go all China style on everyone... all about control.

 

Been here 20 years and I have heard of hundreds of idiotic government proposals but this one by far is the most impractical, nonsensical, inconvenient, and I would assume universally unpopular ideas ever to be proposed. Who votes for these idiots?

I'm not defending the idea!!

 

In Egypt (where I have some projects) the largest banknote is 200 Egyptian Pounds or 130.64 Baht.

 

It generally works OK. You just have to carry around a large wedgie

 

Of course the main reason is to force everyone in to using digital payment systems so The Man can see what we are up to.

 

36 minutes ago, Sir Dude said:

Another stupid idea in a long list of stupid ideas. Sounds to me more of a power grab and basically making the economy cashless, which will backfire massively, as Thailand simply won't simplify it all so that local Thais, tourists, and businesses aren't effected. Sooner or later, people the world over are going to realise that you do need cash as a backup/alternative. 

As said by others above, India tried this and it was a farcical joke and lesson in ineptitude, plus most serious criminals don't bother much with cash now, it's all crypto... much safer for them. On top of that, making the notes all plastic does throw a bit of a spanner in the works for forgers as it's harder to conterfeit the cash.

The person in this article advocating for this is doing the bidding of the financial system and banks/governments so they can go all China style on everyone... all about control.

 

 

Good post....

 

Anyone who does not have the brains see going cashless will eventually turn people into slaves with zero freedom.......

These people might as well be sheep....They really cant be called humans...

 

In a cashless world, there will hardly be a need for prisons...They will just turn your money off if you get out of line, or offend the thought police by saying the wrong thing...

 

 

a dumb idea

1 hour ago, NanLaew said:

India did similar on 8 November 2016 when PM Modi declared that 1000 and 500 rupiah notes would become worthless at midnight.

 

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-37974423

 

The guys that refill the ATM will need to work a lot of overtime to keep them stocked with red notes.

 

They made the notes in the Mahatma Gandhi series obsolete and people had to turn in the old ones to get new 500 and 2000 rupee notes. 

14 minutes ago, Crossy said:

I'm not defending the idea!!

 

In Egypt (where I have some projects) the largest banknote is 200 Egyptian Pounds or 130.64 Baht.

 

It generally works OK. You just have to carry around a large wedgie

 

Of course the main reason is to force everyone in to using digital payment systems so The Man can see what we are up to.

 

 

I was in Sierra Leone in 2000 and went to Barclay's Bank in Freetown to pull $500 on my credit card for my 'field working fund'. The driver and I left the bank, with a couple of bin bags, each with about half-a-million Leones in blocks inside. Then we went for lunch with the agent. I don't recall the exact amount, but we piled about half-a-dozen blocks of Leones on the next table for the waitress to check. Then I recall sitting in traffic and a kid selling the local newspaper which was something like 20 Leones and the smallest bills we had were 2000's. Funnily enough, he couldn't make change.

 

Before that, I think that it was in India that the banks didn't use rubber or plastic bands, but had large construction-type staples driven through blocks of bills. Apparently they started doinmg this afetr there was a problem with fake bills or even just colored paper being inserted into regularly strapped bundles of bills by dodgy buggers.

Who are The Thai Pakdee Party?

I can see us carrying around backpacks full of 100 baht bills.......I was on vacation in Zimbabwe when the Z-Bucks fell thru the floor, still have a bunch of Hundred Trillion, Five Hundred Billion Notes, and even Money with Expiration Dates on them, use by __/__/__ or they are worthless..............People were using them as firewood.

Indian Currency...Today

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2000 rupee is worth 22.26  dollars..

by giving so muchnotice to this plan it's an automatic failure

3 hours ago, ChipButty said:

The corrupt police will only accept 100 Baht notes now? 

ONLY GOLD! 

4 hours ago, FlorC said:

I would like to see 2000 or 5000 B notes.

Or even 10k notes , still half of a 500 euro bill.

 

Won't corruption go for gold bars ?

Easier for higher values .

 

 

 

 

 

The 500 Euro note was withdrawn in April, 2019

3 hours ago, Crossy said:

I'm not defending the idea!!

 

In Egypt (where I have some projects) the largest banknote is 200 Egyptian Pounds or 130.64 Baht.

 

It generally works OK. You just have to carry around a large wedgie

 

Of course the main reason is to force everyone in to using digital payment systems so The Man can see what we are up to.

 

In Switzerland they still have a 1000 Franc note, work that out in Thai Baht. There have been some calls to do away with it, to stop money laundering.

But with the well-known Swiss banking system, that is unlikely to happen.

5 hours ago, calbts2 said:

Been here 20 years and I have heard of hundreds of idiotic government proposals but this one by far is the most impractical, nonsensical, inconvenient, and I would assume universally unpopular ideas ever to be proposed. Who votes for these idiots?

HAha perhaps our wives did... Haha... 

BEsides, we all know the winner from votes never ends up being in charge of important offices or the country