Thai Planning Agency Sounds Alarm Over Gen Z Debt Surge Triggered by Influencers

 

Thailand’s NESDC warns first-time workers face escalating bad debt as social media trends and online reviews override financial self-restraint.

 

 

Thailand’s state planning agency has expressed grave concern over the country’s youngest demographic, warning that "Gen Z" consumers under the age of 25 are accumulating personal debt and slipping into default at an unprecedented rate.

 

According to the National Economic and Social Development Council (NESDC), the surge is being fundamentally driven by impulsive shopping habits. Young workers are increasingly purchasing goods and services promoted by social media influencers without assessing their own repayment capacity.

 

Unveiling the Q1/2026 Thai Social Trends report, NESDC secretary-general Danucha Pichayanan noted that while broader household debt expanded only marginally in the final quarter of last year, it marks the second consecutive quarterly rise.

 

The macro data masks a more volatile micro trend: a severe deterioration in credit quality among young, first-time earners entering the workforce.

 

 

 

 

A Social Media Spending Spree

The digital landscape has fundamentally altered consumer behaviour in Southeast Asia’s second-largest economy.

 

Rather than acting purely as entertainment hubs, platforms like YouTube, TikTok, and Facebook have morphed into primary commerce engines where consumer trust is manufactured.

 

Data from the Visa Gen Z Decoded 2025 study highlighted that 58 per cent of Thai Gen Z consumers implicitly trust recommendations from the digital creators they follow, whilst half view brands featured on these platforms favourably.

 

 

 

 

This digital influence is directly correlating with financial distress.

 

Data from the National Credit Bureau (NCB) revealed that in the fourth quarter of 2025, outstanding credit card and personal loan debt for the under-25 age bracket surged by 13.5 per cent and 11.5 per cent respectively—the highest growth rate recorded across all age demographics.

 

 

 

 

Deteriorating Credit Quality

At a macro level, Thailand's total household debt reached 16.44 trillion baht by the end of 2025, representing 86.7 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP). While commercial banking non-performing loans (NPLs) shrank slightly to 3.23 per cent, the broader individual credit market paints a far bleaker picture.

 

Total individual NPLs—debts overdue by more than 90 days—surged by 7.6 per cent year-on-year to 1.31 trillion baht, accounting for nearly a tenth of all consumer loans.

 

Special mention loans (SMLs), which are overdue by 31 to 90 days and sit on the precipice of defaulting, stood at 480 billion baht. Analysts warn these require urgent intervention before economic headwinds drag them into full default.

 

The growth was unevenly distributed across sectors. Whilst real estate loans ticked up by 1.76 per cent—buoyed by the temporary relaxation of Loan-to-Value (LTV) rules—and personal loans jumped 4.24 per cent, automotive loans plummeted by 8.44 per cent, marking a ninth consecutive quarter of contraction.

 

 

 

 

 

Limits of Financial Literacy

The NESDC is urging policymakers to institutionalise financial literacy early, citing Australia’s model of introducing financial education at the primary school level to counter peer pressure and social spending.

 

However, Danucha conceded that education alone is an insufficient shield against targeted algorithmic marketing.

 

"Whenever desires override financial limitations, debt is inevitable," Danucha warned. "Today, consumers are triggered to buy things far too easily because of online reviews. Financial literacy alone cannot fix this; it ultimately relies on individual self-restraint. Young people must remind themselves of their actual income and avoid taking on unnecessary liabilities, especially as the upcoming economic outlook remains heavily constrained."