This report discusses Thailand's banking system and their roles and responsibilities in hydropower development in the Mekong region and Laos. Commercial banks in Thailand are increasingly lending to neighboring Mekong countries, which includes hydropower projects in Laos. Dam projects that have been financed to date have all inadequately addressed social costs and environmental impacts. In an area where the rural population depends on the natural resources that rivers provide, dam projects pose risks for the environment, communities, project developers, financiers, and the government.