Indonesia to launch national crypto exchange in 2023: Report

As a part of its reform of crypto regulation, Indonesia will create a crypto exchange in 2023, according to reports. The platform is planned to be launched prior to a shift of regulatory power from commodities to securities authority. 

On Jan. 4, the head of the Commodity Futures Trading Regulatory Agency of Indonesia (Bappebti), Didid Noordiatmoko, stated that a crypto exchange should be set up this year. The move comes as a part of broader financial reform launched in December 2022.

In accordance with the reform, in the next two years, the crypto oversight will be taken from Bappebti, a commodities-focused agency, by the Financial Services Authority (FSA).

The Financial Sector Development and Reinforcement bill (P2SK) was ratified by the House of Representatives of Indonesia on Dec. 15 to become the primary legal reference in the financial service sector. Explaining the shift of authority from Bappebti to the FSA, cemented by the bill, Suminto Sastrosuwito, a head of Financing and Risk Management of the national finance ministry, claimed that:

“In fact, crypto assets have become investment and financial instruments, so they need to be regulated on an equal basis with other financial and investment instruments.”

Indonesia imposed a blanket ban on crypto payments starting in 2017, while trading in digital assets has largely remained legal in the country. In the first days of January, Noordiatmoko revealed that the value of crypto transactions in the country fell by half in 2022 — from 859.4 trillion Indonesian rupiahs ($55 million) to 296.66 trillion ($19 million). 

Related: Majority of crypto exchange leadership should be comprised of citizens, say Indonesian regulators

In December, Bank of Indonesia Governor Perry Warjiyo announced the release of the conceptual design of a digital rupiah — a currency the equivalent of the country’s fiat — which will be made available for public discussion.