Remarks of President of the Republic of Indonesia at the Opening of Indonesia Fintech Summit 2020 (virtually) Wednesday, 11 November 2020 from the Merdeka Palace, Jakarta

Bismillahirrahmanirrahim.

Assalamu’alaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh,

May prosperity be upon us all.

Distinguished Ministers of Indonesia Onward Cabinet,

Distinguished Governor of Bank of Indonesia,

Distinguished Chairman of Board of Commissioners of the Financial Services Authority,

Distinguished Fintech Industry Providers,

Ladies and Gentlemen.

On this auspicious occasion, I would like to express my appreciation to the innovators and founders of the country’s fintech industry throughout Indonesia. Fintech industry has given a positive contribution to the national economy and increased the people’s access to financial services.

I acknowledge that fintech services have been growing very rapidly. The contribution of fintech to national loan distribution in 2020 reached Rp128.7 trillion, or increased by 113 percent year-on-year. As of September 2020, there are 89 fintech providers who have contributed as much as Rp9.87 trillion to Indonesian financial service transactions and Rp15.5 trillion was channeled by licensed fintech equity crowdfunding operators. This is an extraordinary development.

Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen,

We still have more works to do in developing financial technology. Based on our Financial Inclusion Index, Indonesia is still lagging behind several ASEAN countries. In 2019, our Financial Inclusion Index was 76 percent, lower than that of some countries in ASEAN, for example Singapore which is at 98 percent, Malaysia at 85 percent, Thailand at 82 percent. Once again, we are still at 76 percent.

Indonesia’s digital financial literacy level is still low, only around 35.5 percent. There are still many people who use informal financial services and only 31.26 percent of people have used digital services. Therefore, I hope that fintech providers will not only become lenders and providers of online payments, but also act as the main driver of digital financial literacy for the communities, as an assistant to financial planners, and expand MSMEs access to e-commerce marketing. Fintech providers must also develop themselves continuously to carry out the function of aggregator and innovative credit scoring by providing equity crowdfunding and project financing services.

Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen,

However, technological developments in the financial sector also pose potential risks, among others cybercrimes, misinformation, error transactions, as well as misuse of personal data. Moreover, non-financial banking regulations are not as strict as banking regulations. Therefore, fintech industry providers need to strengthen better governance and mitigate various risks that may arise. That way, I hope intech industry can provide safe services for the people, as well as make a major contribution to the development of MSMEs and the national economy.

That concludes my remarks.

By saying bismillahirrahmanirrahim, I officially open Indonesia Fintech Summit 2020 and Fintech Week 2020.

I thank you.

Wassalamu’alaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh.

Translated by Estu Widyamurti
Reviewed by M. Ersan Pamungkas