Jakarta. The Indonesian government has officially banned the Chinese trading app Temu, citing its potential disruptions among local small and medium enterprises.

Communication and Informatics Minister Budi Arie Setiadi said Wednesday another reason to ban Temu was that the app isn’t a registered e-commerce platform in Indonesia.

“We have taken down Temu in response to complaints from the public, primarily the MSMEs. After all, Temu isn’t registered as an electronic system provider here,” Budi said at his office in Jakarta.

“We block Temu from AppStore and PlayStore to protect consumers and MSMEs,” Budi said.

Cooperative and MSME Minister Teten Masduki said earlier the app could endanger Indonesian small businesses because it facilitates direct transactions between consumers and factories in China.

“Local MSMEs need government protection from foreign marketplaces that sell products directly from factories at very low prices. This will create unfair business competition and jeopardize local MSMEs,” Teten said.