Thailand’s new licensing system for firms working with digital assets has seen a flurry of applications from companies seeking to offer token sales and exchange services just weeks after it went into effect, an official has said.

In a news report from Bangkok Post on Thursday, Rapee Sucharitakul, the secretary-general of the Thailand Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), said a total of 20 crypto exchanges had already registered for licenses.

As CoinDesk has previously reported, rules created to regulate ICOs took effect on July 16 after a royal decree was made public in May. As part of the scheme, projects that intend to offer crypto exchange services must also gain approval from the SEC before trading starts.

“Many companies interested in opening digital asset exchanges have said digital assets and cryptocurrency trading in the Thai market are quite active,” Sucharitakul said.

In addition, the SEC said around 50 ICOs have expressed interest in becoming registered to conduct compliant token sales in the country.

However, before the SEC can grant licenses to individual projects, it must first select the so-called “ICO portals” – online marketplaces where potential ICO issuers can operate their token sales. Sucharitakul said that, out of the five companies that have expressed interest in becoming ICO portals, three have already filed applications.

In the same region, regulators from the Philippines embarked on a similar effort just last week, releasing draft rules for the regulation of token sales. The nation is currently seeking public comment on how to let ICOs operate in a regulated environment.

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