Thailand Supreme Court recognizes Bitcoin as property in a recent ruling

Thailand’s Supreme Court has ruled that Bitcoin qualifies as property under criminal law, upholding a 10-year prison sentence in a robbery case involving the forced transfer of $50,000 worth of cryptocurrency. Summary Thailand’s Supreme Court has ruled that Bitcoin qualifies as property under criminal law because it has measurable market value, can be owned, and can be exchanged for cash. The ruling stems from a September 2022 robbery on Koh Samui, where a group of foreign nationals threatened and assaulted a victim before forcing him to transfer 2.480801 BTC worth $50,000. The court rejected the defendant’s argument that Bitcoin had no intrinsic value and upheld his 10-year prison sentence along with an order to return the cryptocurrency or compensate the victim. According to local media, the ruling, numbered 4929/2569, was issued by the Supreme Court’s full bench and concerned a September 2022 robbery on the island of Koh Samui, where a group of foreign nationals threatened and assaulted a victim before forcing him to purchase and transfer 2.480801 BTC. The court rejected the defendant’s argument that Bitcoin had no intrinsic value and therefore could not qualify as property capa...