Thai Supreme Court Rules Bitcoin Counts as Property in Robbery Case

Thailand’s Supreme Court has decided that bitcoin qualifies as property, throwing out a defendant’s argument that the cryptocurrency had no value of its own. The case began in September 2022 on the island of Koh Samui, where a victim was forced to turn $50,000 into about 2.48 BTC and send it to attackers. Bitcoin traded near $20,000 at the time. The court held that changing money into bitcoin did not strip it of value or stop it from being property.

Why the Court Treated Bitcoin as Property

In its summary, the plenary bench said bitcoin has a market price, can be swapped for cash when a buyer exists and can be held by ordinary people. The judges pointed to Thailand’s 2018 digital asset business decree, which describes cryptocurrency as electronic data made on a network to serve as a medium of exchange. They also noted a Bank of Thailand letter saying crypto is not legal tender, but ruled that this did not block bitcoin from counting as property in a criminal case.

Sentence Upheld for Man Who Helped the Robbers

Local reports say the attackers confronted the victim and his wife at a coffee shop, threatened the family and assaulted him before forcing the transfer. The defendant arranged transport and lodging for the group. The Supreme Court kept his 10 year sentence, which came from a 15 year term cut by a third because his evidence helped the case. The lower court also ordered the bitcoin returned to the victim.