Bank Indonesia to Ease Branchless Banking Services, Electronic Money Regulations
Jakarta. Bank Indonesia, the country's central bank, is set to ease branchless banking services and electronic money regulations in order to broaden cashless payment systems in the country.
Under a regulation that will be implemented next week, Bank Indonesia will allow any lender with a core capital of above Rp 1 trillion ($76 million) to provide branchless banking services, including accepting deposits or payments using individual agents, instead of having to visit local bank branches or ATM machines.
Currently only five lenders provide branchless banking services including state-controlled lenders Bank Mandiri, Bank Rakyat Indonesia, Bank Negara Indonesia as well as Bank Central Asia — the country's largest lender by market capitalization — and Bank CIMB Niaga, the local unit of Malaysian financial firm CIMB.
"There are areas that are not covered by smaller sized banks like the regional development banks. So in order to push for financial inclusion, we have to accommodate these banks," Bank Indonesia deputy governor, Ronald Waas, said.
Under the revised rules, Bank Indonesia would also double its maximum cash amount in electronic money to Rp 10 million. Introduced more than decade ago, transacting using electronic money has gained popularity in the past few years. Bank Indonesia will also implement a feature to transact with electronic money for public transport and toll road payments.
Ronald however said that the central bank would require that all banks demonstrate excellent risk management capabilities before they can apply for providing the services. "We do not want this to be used for money laundering or terrorism," Ronald warned
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