Demand for gold in Thailand is on the rise despite the global trends of record high prices, according to the latest report released by the World Gold Council (WGC) on August 13.

Thai Finance Minister Pichai Chunhavajira said on May 28 that a set of short-term stimulus measures was prepared by the ministry, aiming at increasing disposable income through debt restructuring at both public and private banks, highlighting the Bank of Thailand already signed on to this idea.

Banks in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) are grappling with uncertainty over their loan books as evidence of persistent inflation that leads central banks to refrain from slashing interest rates, increasing pressure in the financing business.

Demand for gold in Vietnam fell by 12% year-on-year in the first quarter to 17.2 tonnes, according to the latest Gold Demand Trends report from the World Gold Council.

Indonesia’s central bank governor Perry Warjiyo has called on bank governors of ASEAN member states to further boost collaboration to maintain regional economic growth.

The ASEAN Central Bank Deputies Meeting (ACDM) took place on March 28 in Indonesia to discuss the priority economic deliverables (PEDs) in 2023.

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) said on March 23 that the Nexus Project prototype of the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) has successfully connected with the payment systems of Europe, Malaysia and Singapore.

Bank Indonesia (BI) is collaborating with the Bank of England (BOE) in holding the ASEAN Central Banks Workshop on Enhancing Real-Time Gross Settlement (RTGS), Integrating Cross-Border Payment Systems, and Exploring Central-Bank Digital Currencies from March 8-10 in Jakarta.

Bank Indonesia (BI) and the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) have agreed to renew their Bilateral Local Currency Swap Arrangement (BCSA).

Vietnam is playing catch-up in a global race to develop its own digital currency and experts believe this will not only help the country develop new technology but also present an opportunity for Vietnam to join the most technologically-advanced countries.

The State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) was recently invited to become a member of the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), showing the BIS’s recognition of Vietnam’s socio-economic achievements as well as the SBV’s attainments in steering the monetary policy and managing the banking system.

The central banks of Malaysia and Indonesia on September 27 signed a currency swap agreement, which allows the exchange of local currencies between the central banks of up to 2 billion USD.

Gold prices on global markets have made strong gains in the past two months, but investors with short-term appetite seem uninterested in gold.

The central banks of Thailand and Indonesia have signed a memorandum of understanding on the promotion of the use of their local currencies, bath and rupiah, for bilateral trade.

The State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) on August 29 directed agencies to enhance security measures against risks and payment fraud, following the execution of several scams recently.

Vietnamese shares retreated on February 2 from gains on January 29 on both local markets as fears that the Vietnamese dong may weaker hurt financial firms.