Country Payments & Payouts Guide

Pay and get paid: Thailand

How Thailand pays: PromptPay QR and instant bank transfer lead the checkout, e-wallets follow, and cards stay a minority. A guide to collecting payments, paying out and meeting local rules.

Reviewed quarterly · Last reviewed September 2026

Key Takeaways

Getting paid: money in

PromptPay bank transfer takes 44% of online volume, well clear of e-wallets at 25%. ¹
Cards are 14% of volume with only ~23% card-holding, so card baskets skew high ticket. ²
Cash on delivery is still 15% of online volume, and it settles T+3 to T+7. ¹

Paying out: money out

PromptPay pays out in seconds, 24/7, and is free to send. ³
Instant transfers reached 2.51B, up 13%, so the rail is mainstream. ³
ITMX Bulk Payment handles payroll batches. BAHTNET moves large corporate sums. ³

Market Snapshot

About 91% of Thais are online but only around 23% hold a payment card, so a card-only checkout misses most of a very connected market.

Population

~71.7M⁴

Internet penetration

~91%⁴

Banked population

92%⁴

Unbanked / underbanked

~8%⁴

Digital payments market

~$39B²

E-commerce market

~$36B²

Mobile share of e-commerce

~80%²

Market growth (CAGR)

~7.5%²

Card penetration

~23%²

Source: Bank of Thailand and World Bank Global Findex 2025, with market sizing from Statista Market Insights, 2024-2026.

How People PayMoney In

PromptPay bank transfer leads clearly at 44% of online volume, 19 points ahead of e-wallets on 25%. Cash on delivery takes 15% and cards 14%, so the rest of the mix is split rather than dominated. Build PromptPay first, then wallets, then cards.

PromptPay bank transfer (A2A)

44%

E-wallets

25%

Cash on delivery / OTC

15%

Cards (credit and debit)

14%

Other (BNPL, carrier billing)

PromptPay and e-wallets touch 69% of online volume between them, but a wallet payment can settle over PromptPay, so read that as combined reach rather than a sum. Crypto is not legal tender in Thailand and may not be used to pay for goods. ^{1, 5}

Source: Worldpay Global Payments Report and Bank of Thailand payment statistics, 2024-2026.

Top Local Payment MethodsMoney In

PromptPay is the national QR standard and the instant bank transfer rail behind it, supported by SCB, KBank, Krungthai and Bangkok Bank. It settles in baht in seconds, and chargeback risk is low because the buyer pushes the money. E-wallets such as TrueMoney, LINE Pay, ShopeePay and Dolfin are scanned from the same QR codes, so wallet and PromptPay volumes overlap and should not be added together. Recurring billing is limited on both, so subscriptions still need a card on file.

PromptPay

Instant bank transfer, paid by QR or phone number

Supported by: 20+ banks · 2C2P · Opn · GB Prime Pay
Active users / share: ~44% online · 24.3B txns (2024)
Recurring: No (push only)
Refunds: Manual (PSP-dependent)
Partial / multiple refunds: Manual
One-click / POS: Yes (QR at POS)
Chargeback risk: Low (push, pre-funded)
Transaction size: Any ticket · bank daily limits
Settlement: THB · seconds

E-wallets

Server-based prepaid wallets

Supported by: TrueMoney · LINE Pay · ShopeePay · Dolfin
Active users / share: ~25% of online volume (2025)
Recurring: Limited
Refunds: Yes (to wallet)
Partial / multiple refunds: Yes
One-click / POS: Yes (QR · in-app)
Chargeback risk: Low (pre-funded)
Transaction size: Low ticket · e-money caps apply
Settlement: THB · T+1

Cash: delivery or counter

Cash to the courier, or over the counter in store

Supported by: Kerry · Flash · Thailand Post · 7-Eleven
Active users / share: ~15% of online volume (2025)
Recurring: No
Refunds: Manual (bank transfer)
Partial / multiple refunds: Manual
One-click / POS: No
Chargeback risk: Low · high refusal risk
Transaction size: Low ticket · courier cash caps
Settlement: THB · T+3 to T+7

Cards

Credit and debit, incl. local TPN

Supported by: Visa · Mastercard · JCB · TPN debit
Active users / share: ~14% of online volume (2025)
Recurring: Yes (card on file)
Refunds: Yes
Partial / multiple refunds: Yes
One-click / POS: Yes (tokenised)
Chargeback risk: Elevated (3DS · CNP)
Transaction size: High ticket · instalments common
Settlement: THB · T+1

Banks must run a face scan on mobile transfers over 50,000 baht, or over 200,000 baht a day.³ Payment data can sit offshore, but the Personal Data Protection Act allows transfers abroad only under approved safeguards.³

Source: Bank of Thailand and National ITMX PromptPay data, with Worldpay method shares, 2024-2026. PromptPay QR is acceptance infrastructure and many e-wallets settle over it, so the two volumes overlap and are not additive.

Card Scheme MixMoney In

Visa takes 62% of card volume and Mastercard 27%, so the two international schemes cover the large majority. The domestic scheme, Thai Payment Network (TPN), holds 3%, level with UnionPay. JCB adds 4%. ⁶

Visa

62%

Mastercard

27%

JCB

UnionPay

Local (Thai Payment Network, TPN)

Other (Amex, Diners)

Visa and Mastercard together are 89% of card volume, so acquiring must cover both. ²

Source: Statista Market Insights and Bank of Thailand card statistics, with Thai Payment Network scheme data, 2024-2025.

Fees & FX★ Autopilot dataGated

Local method acceptance carries a merchant discount rate (MDR), the fee taken from each sale, of 1.65% on tickets above THB 5,000. Treat that as indicative rather than a published standard. It applies only to volume acquired locally in Thailand, so cross-border acceptance prices differently. Card rates and FX sit with your acquirer and are quoted case by case. Benchmarks are available on request.

Contact Autopilot for detailed fee & FX benchmarks for your industry.

Source: Opn Payments (Omise) published Thailand pricing, with Bank of Thailand transfer fee guidance, 2018-2026.

Making PayoutsMoney Out

PromptPay moves money in seconds, 24/7, with no transfer fee and a ceiling of THB 2M per transfer subject to bank limits. Volume is 2.51B transfers, up 13%. For payroll and supplier runs, ITMX Bulk Payment batches settle same day or next business day.

Payout rail	Best used for	Settlement speed	Transaction size
PromptPay, national instant bank transfer	Everyday payouts to consumers and small merchants	Seconds, 24/7 including weekends	Up to THB 2M per transfer, bank limits apply
ITMX Bulk Payment (SMART batch transfer)	Payroll, supplier and dividend batch files	Same day (DC2) or next business day (DC3)	Many low-value items in one file
BAHTNET, the central bank RTGS system	High-value and time-critical corporate transfers	Real time, bank days 08:30-17:30	No minimum or maximum, used for large sums
PromptPay cross-border links (PayNow etc.)	Small payouts to people in linked ASEAN markets	Near real time, within minutes	Capped, e.g. THB 25,000 a day to Singapore

BAHTNET, the central bank's real-time system, handles large corporate transfers on bank days, 08:30-17:30. ³

Source: Bank of Thailand, BAHTNET real-time gross settlement and PromptPay, with National ITMX bulk payment (SMART), 2025-2026.

Cross-Border Money FlowsCross-Border

Cross-border e-commerce value

~$11.5B²

Consumers buying cross-border

~45%²

China is the main source of cross-border buying, with Japan second, mostly via Shopee, Lazada and TikTok Shop. The Bank of Thailand (BOT) also runs real-time QR payment links with nine places: China, Cambodia, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Laos, Malaysia, Singapore and Vietnam ³. Cross-border is about 30% of online sales, so the value here is an estimate ².

Source: Bank of Thailand, cross-border payment linkages including PromptPay and Singapore's PayNow, 2021-2026.

Cross-Border Card Authorisation★ Autopilot dataGated

Cross-border card authorisation in Thailand tends to lag domestic acceptance. Issuers see a foreign acquirer and a foreign currency, so they decline more often on thin signals. Route the same traffic through a local acquirer, in baht, with a Thai descriptor, and the issuer reads it as a domestic transaction. Local acquiring also opens up instalments.

Contact Autopilot for detailed authorisation, retry & approval-rate data.

Source: Bank of Thailand payment statistics and Worldpay Global Payments Report, 2024-2026.

Payment & Payout Statistics

Median payment size (consumer)

~$12²

Median payout size (consumer)

~$35

The median consumer payment is about $12 and the median payout about $35, so both sides of the flow run on small tickets. Per-transaction cost matters more than headline percentages. ²

Source: Bank of Thailand, National ITMX and Statista Market Insights, 2024-2026.

Technical Insights

Online fraud & chargeback: Thai police logged 1,058,056 online fraud reports between 2022 and 2025, with damage above 100 billion baht.¹ Card chargebacks stay rare, since most online spend is pre-funded PromptPay QR, not cards.³
Common risk tools: Banks must run a face scan on mobile transfers over 50,000 baht, or over 200,000 baht a day.⁵ All banks share mule-account data through the Central Fraud Registry.⁷
QR payout capability: PromptPay, the national instant rail, pays out to a mobile number or citizen ID in seconds.³ Bank bulk payouts cap at 2 million baht each.²
Avg settlement time: PromptPay transfers settle in seconds, 24/7.³ Card money reaches merchants later, usually T+1 to T+2 business days.¹

Source: Bank of Thailand payment and fraud rules, with Opn Payments and National ITMX product documentation, 2023-2026.

Banking & Fintech Landscape

Licensed fintechs

~177⁷

Licensed crypto exchanges

~7⁷

Commercial banks

~30⁷

Source: World Bank Global Findex Database 2025 and Bank of Thailand, 2024-2025.

Regulatory Snapshot

Thailand sets no foreign shareholding cap on payment firms under the Payment Systems Act. A majority foreign-owned firm needs a Foreign Business Licence and a Thai-resident director, and commercial banks face a 25% cap.

Who regulates: The Bank of Thailand (BOT) supervises payment systems and e-payment licence holders under the Payment Systems Act 2017. The Finance Ministry signs each licence. Digital assets sit with the SEC. ⁵
Capital requirement: Paid-up capital is fixed by licence type. E-money needs THB 100 million, acquiring THB 50 million, payment facilitating or receiving payment on behalf THB 10 million. A card network or inter-bank transfer system needs THB 50 million, a settlement system THB 200 million. ⁵
Ownership: The Payment Systems Act sets no foreign shareholding cap on payment firms. A majority foreign-owned one needs a Foreign Business Licence and a Thai-resident director. Commercial banks: 25%. ⁵
Data localisation: Thailand does not force data to stay onshore. The Personal Data Protection Act 2019 (PDPA) has applied in full since June 2022 and is enforced by the Personal Data Protection Committee (PDPC). Personal data may leave Thailand only under an adequacy finding or an approved safeguard, per rules in force since 24 March 2024. Fines run to THB 5 million. Banks must tell the BOT before moving significant IT work offshore. ⁵

Source: Bank of Thailand, Payment Systems Act B.E. 2560 (2017), and Personal Data Protection Act B.E. 2562 (2019), 2017-2026.

Where Autopilot Helps in Thailand★ Autopilot edge

Marketplaces & platforms

Collect through PromptPay QR and pay sellers back out on the same instant rail.

SaaS / subscriptions

Recurring is limited on PromptPay and wallets, so keep cards on file for renewals.

Remittance / payouts

PromptPay cross-border links reach linked ASEAN markets in minutes, with daily caps per corridor.

Digital goods / gaming

Low tickets suit wallets and QR, both pre-funded, so chargebacks stay rare.

Travel & hospitality

High-ticket bookings still run on cards, with instalments common and tokenised one-click checkout.

Creator & gig economy

Pay creators in seconds through PromptPay, or batch them via ITMX Bulk Payment.

Operating a different model? We support many more business types.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the most popular payment method in Thailand?

PromptPay bank transfer, at 44% of online volume. E-wallets follow on 25%, then cash on delivery at 15% and cards at 14%. Support PromptPay first, then wallets. ¹

Can foreign businesses accept Thai QR Payment?

Yes, in practice through a local acquirer or a payment provider with a Thai entity, because PromptPay settles in baht through Thai banks such as SCB, KBank, Krungthai and Bangkok Bank. ³

How do I pay out to sellers or staff in Thailand?

Use PromptPay for everyday payouts to consumers and small merchants: seconds, 24/7, up to THB 2M per transfer. Use ITMX Bulk Payment for payroll and supplier batches, and BAHTNET for large corporate sums. ³

What are the MDR / fees for accepting payments?

The local-method rate quoted in Thailand is 1.65% on tickets above THB 5,000, and it applies only to volume acquired locally. Card pricing and FX depend on your acquirer. Benchmarks are available on request. ²

Are cryptocurrencies allowed for payments?

No. Crypto is not legal tender in Thailand and cannot be used to pay for goods and services. Price and settle in baht. ⁵

Do I need to store payment data inside Thailand?

No. Thailand does not force payment data to stay onshore. The Personal Data Protection Act, in force since June 2022, allows transfers abroad only under an adequacy finding or an approved safeguard, with fines up to THB 5 million. ⁵

What is a PromptPay and why does it matter?

PromptPay is Thailand's national QR standard and instant bank transfer rail. It settles in baht in seconds, 24/7, and it is free to send. It carries 44% of online volume, so it is the one method to build first. ^{1, 3}

Explore Other Markets in the Region

→ Indonesia → Vietnam → Philippines → Singapore → Others

Operating in Thailand?

We'll benchmark your approval rates and FX against our network, and map the local methods and payout rails that fit your business.

References

Worldpay, Global Payments Report, Thailand online and point-of-sale payment method shares, 2025-2026. https://www.worldpay.com/en/insights/articles/digital-payments-GPR-guide
Statista Market Insights, Digital Payments Thailand, transaction value, growth and card mix, 2024-2028. https://www.statista.com/outlook/dmo/fintech/digital-payments/thailand
Bank of Thailand, PromptPay and digital payment statistics, 2018-2026. https://www.bot.or.th/en/financial-innovation/digital-finance/digital-payment/promptpay.html
World Bank, Global Findex Database 2025, Thailand account ownership, data year 2024, reported via FinDev Gateway. https://www.findevgateway.org/region/financial-inclusion-global-overview
Bank of Thailand, Payment Systems Act B.E. 2560 (2017), licensing, registration and ownership conditions for payment service providers. https://www.bot.or.th/content/dam/bot/documents/en/laws-and-rules/laws-and-regulations/legal-department/4-payment-act/4.1%20LAW04_PaymentSystemAct.pdf
Thai Payment Network (TPN) is Thailand's domestic card switching network, set up by large Thai banks with UnionPay International, and it routes and clears domestically issued debit card transactions inside Thailand instead of sending them offshore. https://www.unionpayintl.com/en/mediaCenter/newsCenter/companyNews/3011080.shtml
Bank of Thailand, Oversight according to the Payment Systems Act, lists of licensed and registered payment service providers, 2024-2026. https://www.bot.or.th/en/our-roles/payment-systems/payment-act-oversight.html