Samut Sakhon Vendors Could Trade Loan Sharks for 8% State Loans

Low-income vendors in Thailand’s coastal fish markets may soon get breathing space from predatory loans, if a campaign swing by Rak Chart Party in Samut Sakhon translates into parliamentary seats. The party unveiled a plan to pull หนี้นอกระบบ—informal debt—into state banks, promising easier credit and lower interest for millions who rely on loan sharks.

Snapshot: What Rak Chart is selling

• One-card borrowing – applicants present only their national ID.

• Temporary credit window – 3-year rollout to steady grassroots cashflow.

• Interest cap aligned with state banks – around 8% per year, a fraction of the 20% per 40-day cycle many street vendors now face.

Why Samut Sakhon matters

The province, home to Mahachai’s seafood hub, mirrors national debt trends. Vendors told party leader Chaiwut Thanakamanusorn they repay up to ฿200 daily in interest alone, money angling boats and market stalls can ill afford. With household debt hovering near 87% of GDP, informal loans have filled a credit vacuum, especially after the pandemic drained small-business savings.

Inside the ‘ID-only’ loan proposal

Rak Chart’s prime-ministerial pick Jade Donavanik says the scheme channels borrowers to the Government Savings Bank and BAAC, bypassing paperwork that stalls micro-loans today. Digital ID verification, mobile onboarding, and automatic payment links to e-wallets aim to replace notebook ledgers kept by backyard lenders. The party concedes non-performing loans could rise but argues that “profits, not the social fabric, should absorb the shock.”

Street voices: daily interest, nightly anxiety

Mahachai fishmonger Jintana S., who juggles three informal notes, describes a vicious loop: “I cover interest with yesterday’s sales, then borrow again for tomorrow’s squid.” Such stories are common: research by the Puey Ungphakorn Institute shows over 40% of Thai households hold off-book debt averaging ฿54,000, with loan shark rates spiking to an annualised 365%. Violent collection tactics—from helmeted enforcers to public shaming—have turned a private burden into a public safety issue.

Economists split on the cure

Kasikorn Research applauds the plan for cutting “usurious” costs and circulating money back through formal channels.

Chulalongkorn analysts warn of moral hazard if bailouts become routine and urge parallel policies that lift incomes, not just refinance liabilities.

Risk experts flag the strain on state-bank balance sheets once high-risk borrowers migrate en masse. Without tighter data on the estimated ฿2.2 T informal debt pile, pricing risk remains guesswork.

Political cross-currents

Rak Chart is not alone in courting low earners. Palang Pracharath’s “Pracharath Card Extra” would raise welfare stipends to ฿700 monthly and expand utility subsidies, while the Movement Party pushes a “Work from Hometown” model to spur local micro-enterprises. Yet neither rival offers a single-card pathway quite as aggressive as Rak Chart’s bank-backed refinance pledge.

What to watch after the rallies

• Regulatory muscle – the Bank of Thailand must approve any special-rate product; past attempts stalled at compliance hurdles.• Pilot districts – sources inside Rak Chart hint at five coastal markets and two northeast farming clusters as early test beds.• Debt data transparency – civil-society groups want public dashboards tracking uptake, defaults, and average interest saved.

Bold promises alone won’t untangle Thailand’s informal-debt knot, but for shellfish sellers who count cash by lantern light, an 8% legal loan could mean the difference between staying afloat and sinking into perpetual interest.