Bitget said on Friday it is reviewing a Thai Securities and Exchange Commission notice that targets the exchange for allegedly operating without a license, and that user assets remain safe. The regulator’s Thursday filing asks Thailand’s digital ministry to block Bitget’s website, related domains and app from December 5, giving Thai users a window to move funds before access is cut.
The case is a criminal complaint, not a conviction, and the block is not live yet. It also lands weeks after Bitget announced plans to buy a licensed Thai exchange, a deal that still needs approval and is not a Thai license.
What Thailand’s SEC filed
In notice No. 241/2026, dated November 5, Thailand’s SEC said it had filed a criminal complaint with the Economic Crime Suppression Division against BG Limited, “the provider of the digital asset exchange platform on www.bitget.com (Bitget),” for operating a digital-asset exchange without a license under the Emergency Decree on Digital Asset Businesses B.E. 2561 (2018). The same complaint names one individual the SEC says supported Bitget’s actions.
The SEC said that during 2022-2025 Bitget provided a trading system in the ordinary course of business and charged fees, offered a Thai-language website with baht-equivalent prices, and solicited users in Thai through its site and social accounts, including “Bitget Thailand” on X, “BGB Thai Holder” on Telegram and “bitgetthailand” on TikTok. That conduct, it said, is an unlicensed digital-asset exchange under Sections 3, 26 and 66 of the decree.
The SEC also named Mr. Kritsana Kritsananuwat, saying he promoted Bitget through the Facebook page “Srisiam” and YouTube channel “SRISIAM,” which it treats as assisting an unlicensed exchange under the same decree and Section 86 of the Criminal Code.
December 5 access block
Separately from the criminal track, the SEC said it submitted information on www.bitget.com, other Bitget domains and Bitget’s application to the Ministry of Digital Economy and Society under a 2025 royal decree that authorizes the ministry to order blocks of unlicensed digital-asset trading platforms. “As a result, the public will be unable to access the platform from 5 December 2026,” the SEC said.
The regulator alerted investors using Bitget “to consider taking action regarding their assets held on the platform before the scheduled access blocking date.” It also said users of unlicensed operators “will not be protected under the law” and pointed the public to its licensed-operator list and Investor Alert pages.
After the complaint, the SEC said, the process moves to investigation by the inquiry official, prosecution by the public prosecutor and adjudication by the courts. Liability is for the courts to decide.
Bitget’s response
Bitget has not posted its own statement on the complaint on its blog or official X account that we could find. A Bitget spokesperson told Cointelegraph on Friday that the exchange was reviewing the Thai SEC announcement and evaluating how to engage the regulator.
“We have no further information to share at this stage,” the spokesperson said, according to Cointelegraph, adding that user assets remain safe and that Bitget would guide users on any access changes through official channels.
A planned Thai acquisition is still pending
The complaint follows Bitget’s own October 20 announcement of a planned buyout of a licensed Thai venue. Bitget said it planned to acquire GMO-Z.com Cryptonomics (Thailand) Co., Ltd., a Bangkok digital-asset exchange and brokerage, through its interest in BTGT Management (Thailand) Ltd. Completion “is subject to applicable regulatory approval, among other conditions,” Bitget wrote. After closing and a change-of-control approval, it said it intends to introduce its trading platform to Thai users under Thai rules.
“Building a presence in a market requires local expertise, an understanding of the regulatory environment and a long-term commitment to the market,” Bitget CEO Gracy Chen said in that announcement. A pending acquisition is not a license and does not erase the SEC’s claim that Bitget already solicited Thai users without one.
Same promoter pattern as an earlier OKX case
Kritsana’s appearance in the Bitget complaint is not the first time the SEC has named him. In a March 21, 2025 notice, the SEC said it had filed a criminal complaint against Aux Cayes FinTech Co. Ltd., the provider of OKX, and nine supporters, including Kritsana via the same “Srisiam” Facebook and YouTube accounts, for assisting an unlicensed exchange. The Bitget case uses the same legal theory against the same channels.
That fits a regional pattern of offshore exchanges pushed toward local licenses or cut off, similar to Binance’s later return to the Philippines through a regulator sandbox. Bitget has kept expanding elsewhere, including the AI trading tools we covered earlier, while Thailand forces the licensing question.
What to watch next
The near-term dates are operational. Watch whether MDES confirms the December 5 block, whether Bitget publishes its own Thai-user guidance, and whether the GMO-Z.com deal clears change-of-control approval before that deadline. On the criminal side, the next steps sit with the inquiry official and prosecutors. The SEC has not published a figure for Thai user assets on Bitget or a trial date.
FAQ
Has Bitget been banned in Thailand already? No. The SEC filed a criminal complaint and asked the digital ministry to block access from December 5, 2026. MDES has not separately confirmed that order; the block is not live, and liability is for the courts.
Are user funds safe, according to Bitget? A Bitget spokesperson told Cointelegraph that user assets remain safe and that the firm would communicate any access changes on official channels. The SEC still urges users to act before the scheduled block.
Does Bitget’s Thai acquisition plan change the complaint? Not by itself. Bitget’s October 20 plan to buy licensed GMO-Z.com Cryptonomics is still subject to regulatory approval and is not a current Thai license for www.bitget.com.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice.
