Thailand's Cabinet Creates a National Committee With Power to Gate Data-Centre Market Entry
Thailand's Cabinet approved a Prime Minister's Office regulation establishing a national Data Centre Business Policy Committee, chaired by a Deputy Prime Minister designated by the Prime Minister, with the Ministers of Digital Economy and Society, Interior, and Energy serving as vice-chairs alongside up to three expert appointees. Government Spokesperson Rachada Dhnadirek said: "This policy will ensure that entry into the industry is not open to just anyone. Every investment must comply with the committee's standards."
The committee's remit covers five areas: energy security and clean energy, water and land allocation, urban planning and fire prevention, data sovereignty and security, and environmental remedies. The scale it is being created to manage is substantial — Board of Investment applications ran to 37 data centre projects valued at 736.55 billion baht across 2025, and 7 projects worth 872.49 billion baht in January to March 2026 alone.
Bank Rakyat to Acquire MNRB's Takaful Ikhlas Units for RM1.64 Billion in Cash
MNRB Holdings announced that Rakyat Nominees, owned by Bank Rakyat, will acquire MNRB's entire stakes in Takaful Ikhlas Family Berhad and Takaful Ikhlas General Berhad for RM1.64 billion in cash, subject to adjustments and regulatory approvals. The approvals required before final sale agreements can be signed must be obtained within 12 months unless the parties agree to an extension, and MNRB shareholders must approve the transaction at an extraordinary general meeting.
On completion, both takaful operations cease to be MNRB subsidiaries, allowing MNRB to concentrate on its core reinsurance and retakaful businesses.
RHB Launches What It Calls Malaysia's First Bank-Owned Unified Payment Gateway
RHB Bank introduced RHB Pay, described as Malaysia's first bank-owned unified online payment gateway. The product lets businesses accept card payments, FPX and DuitNow Pay through a single integration, with funds settling directly into RHB accounts and automated reconciliation included. It targets mid-sized enterprises, commercial businesses, corporates and government-related institutions, and runs on PayNet infrastructure for FPX and DuitNow Pay. RHB plans to add e-wallets, QR payments, Direct Debit and Auto Debit in the fourth quarter of 2026.
Dato' Mohd Rashid Mohamad, Group Managing Director and Group Chief Executive Officer of RHB Banking Group, said: "As a bank-owned solution, RHB PAY offers businesses greater assurance over the security of their funds and payment data." Bank Negara Malaysia recorded 18.4 billion e-payment transactions in Malaysia in 2025, up 25% from 14.7 billion in 2024.
Eyes on the Day Ahead
The concrete near-term items are procedural. Thailand's new data-centre committee has a remit but no published standards, and the first substantive question is when it issues criteria and whether pending Board of Investment applications are assessed under the old process or the new one — sponsors with live applications need that answer before anything else. On the MNRB transaction, the 12-month clock on regulatory approvals starts now, and Bank Negara Malaysia is the gating authority for both this and the Maybank-Ageas deal, which puts two large takaful approvals in front of the same regulator simultaneously. Over the next three to five days, watch for competitive responses to RHB Pay from Malaysia's other large banks; a second bank-owned gateway would confirm this as a sector shift rather than a single institution's product bet.
Layer 7 Ventures is a research-driven firm focused on AI and cryptocurrency in Southeast Asia. Views expressed are those of the firm and do not constitute investment advice.
