SURIN — Thailand's Fine Arts Department has officially added several historical sites in Surin province to the national register of ancient monuments, including the Ta Muen and Ta Kwai temple complexes near the Cambodian border.

The announcement was published in the Royal Gazette on May 12 under a Fine Arts Department declaration listing protected ancient sites across Surin province.

The declaration invoked the Ancient Monuments, Antiques, Objects of Art and National Museums Act of 1961, as amended in 1992, which defines ancient monuments as immovable properties with artistic, historical or archaeological significance, including archaeological sites, historical sites and historical parks.

The department stated that the listing aims to provide stronger legal protection for ancient monuments under Thailand's heritage conservation framework.

The newly registered sites include:

Kap Choeng district: Prasat Mon Charoen, Prasat Beng, Prasat Chem, and Prasat Nong Khana

Bua Chet district: Prasat O Thalan

Phanom Dong Rak district: Prasat Ban Nong Khanna, Prasat Ta Muen (also known as Prasat Bay Krim), and Prasat Ta Kwai (also known as Prasat Ta Wai)

Sangkha district: Prasat Tao Thong

The declaration was signed on April 9, 2026 by Fine Arts Department director-general Phanomboot Chanthachot.

A young man resorted to theft to win a woman's heart. The 29-year-old factory worker stole 19 baht of gold from his workplace, sold it, and used the proceeds to hire a woman to break up with her boyfriend and be with him instead. The scheme unraveled when the factory owner recognized the gold ring on his girlfriend.

On May 12, 2026, police led by Superintendent Sarawut Nuchnarot of Bang Lamung Police Station and Deputy Superintendent Yongyut Wanhuai arrested the suspect, identified as Thanakorn or "Louey" (surname withheld), age 29, at his rental room in Moo 9, Nong Pla Lai Subdistrict, Bang Lamung District, Chachoengsao Province. Police recovered one gold ring as evidence.

The investigation began on January 19, 2026, when the wooden pallet factory owner reported that 19 baht of gold had disappeared from inside the factory. With no security cameras available, police questioned all 19 employees and workers. The investigation continued for months until May 11, when the factory owner spotted the girlfriend wearing a gold ring that matched the design of the stolen item. She immediately contacted police.

During interrogation, the suspect confessed. He said he committed the theft because he had fallen for a woman who was already in a relationship. He sold part of the stolen gold and gave his girlfriend 100,000 baht to hire her away from her previous boyfriend. He also gave her the remaining gold to wear and show to her parents. Police have since transferred him for legal proceedings.

Behind the scenes of National ITMX, the developer and operator of Thailand's central financial system that connects all financial transactions 'as one,' enabling seamless digital financial operations.

In an era where transferring money has become as simple as a fingertip gesture, many people may not realize that behind this convenience lies a massive "infrastructure" that links Thailand's entire financial system to work seamlessly together. One crucial mechanism is National ITMX Limited (NITMX), the developer and operator of the central system that unifies Thailand's financial transactions.

Looking back at the turning point in Thai financial history, National ITMX (NITMX) was established through collaboration among Thai commercial banks to implement policies set by the Payment Systems Committee under the Bank of Thailand, aiming to break down barriers to inter-bank transfers. Previously, each bank operated closed systems, making inter-bank transfers difficult, expensive, and time-consuming.

NITMX was created to serve as a central hub systematically connecting the backend systems of all banks, rather than requiring each bank to separately invest in connections with every other bank. By having NITMX as the sole intermediary, all banks can access the nationwide financial network under uniform standards, reducing overall system costs for Thailand's economy. The ITMX system was also designed to handle massive transaction volumes, providing the critical infrastructure that enabled the national PromptPay project to succeed through robust backend processing operating 24/7.

"PromptPay" Transforms Thai Payments with a Single QR Code

PromptPay has emerged as a critical infrastructure component of Thailand's digital financial system and has genuinely become part of people's daily lives. Continuous growth in usage is reflected in 2025 figures showing average transaction volumes exceeding 2,000 million transactions monthly, valued at over 4 trillion baht monthly, with peak daily transaction volumes reaching 96.11 million transactions, demonstrating PromptPay's role as "infrastructure" supporting the nation's economic activities every day.

PromptPay's success results from collaboration among multiple sectors, including the Bank of Thailand, Thai Bankers Association, and commercial banks, with National ITMX Limited (NITMX) serving as the hub connecting all banks' backend systems in real-time.

NITMX plays a crucial role in developing and maintaining the central system that enables "telephone numbers" or "national ID numbers" to safely replace bank account numbers, while supporting the creation of a unified QR Code standard usable across all bank applications, making money transfers, payments, and receipts convenient, swift, and highly accurate. PromptPay is thus not merely a convenience tool for transactions but also a critical mechanism elevating the country's financial infrastructure, establishing a central standard linking all banks together, and strengthening confidence in Thailand's digital payment system internationally. Another important service built on this capability is Bulk Payment, which serves as the "backbone" for large-scale money transfers in a single batch, whether salary payments, government welfare distributions, or organizational-level payments requiring speed, accuracy, and reliability in every transaction.

At 2:00 p.m. on May 12, 2025 at Government House, Deputy Prime Minister Spokesperson Ploythalay Laksameesangjun announced that the cabinet has approved 1.667 billion baht from the central budget's emergency reserve fund for state welfare expenses. This allocation will support beneficiaries of the State Welfare Fund registered under the 2022 State Welfare Registration Program throughout the 2025 fiscal year, as recommended by the Grassroots Economy and Social Welfare Committee. The Prime Minister has authorized the Office of the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Finance to disburse 1.667 billion baht from the emergency reserve fund to provide welfare benefits to 13.33 million eligible citizens enrolled in the 2022 program, beginning from October 2024.

On May 12, Ms. Praewa, owner of the 'Praewa Reviews Whatever' page, recounted her ordeal to online news outlets after posting two Rolex watches for sale valued at approximately 2 million baht. A man contacted her through Line expressing interest in purchasing the watches and, after negotiating, they agreed on a price of 1.8 million baht. The buyer claimed to live in Kanchanaburi province while Ms. Praewa resides in Bangkok.

The buyer eventually requested that a close friend pick up the watches in Bangkok instead. When delivery day arrived, the buyer changed plans again, asking that the package be sent via private courier service instead. Though initially hesitant due to the high value, Ms. Praewa agreed after the buyer claimed to have used this method many times before.

While bringing the package to the shipping company, Ms. Praewa remained in contact with the buyer by phone. Upon arrival at the branch, she provided the account number, but the buyer requested she first send the package and tracking number before transferring payment. Ms. Praewa thought this was acceptable since she could still retrieve the package if needed.

The buyer then claimed the shipping employee shouldn't hear about the high-value item and asked Ms. Praewa to take the call outside near her parked car. During the call, the buyer stalled with excuses about banking app issues and facial recognition problems, eventually claiming he needed to hang up to complete the transfer. He then disappeared and became unreachable.

When Ms. Praewa rushed back to retrieve the package, staff informed her it had already been picked up by a man. Security footage revealed the recipient was a delivery rider, who later passed the package to another person. Ms. Praewa believes this was an organized criminal operation with a systematic approach. Police are currently investigating the case.

Ms. Praewa also questioned the shipping company's security measures, asking why they released the package so easily without verifying the recipient's information. She called for stricter delivery protocols to prevent similar incidents and urged police to apprehend the perpetrators, suspecting she is not their only victim. She warned the public to exercise caution when buying or selling high-value items through online channels.

The Government Savings Bank, represented by Phethai Sunchan, Director of the Debt Control and Management Division for Region 11, along with representatives from Suncharoen Law Office, delivered a letter withdrawing the real estate seizure notice to Mr. Kriengsak (surname withheld) to confirm that the property remains fully owned by the customer.

The bank provided clarification of the facts and apologized to the customer for problems resulting from procedural errors in the enforcement proceedings, which had caused seizure notices to be sent to the customer.

The customer has now been fully informed of the facts and understands the situation. The letter was delivered at the Government Savings Bank Chaiyaphum Branch on May 12, 2026.