Indonesia’s Central Bank will ban cryptocurrencies

Indonesia’s Central Bank is drawing up regulation to ban on all forms of cryptocurrency; their trading and their usage in transactions as payments, according to Agus Martowardojo – the governor of the central bank. According to the local publication, the central bank official made the revelation during the central bank’s annual meeting last week, claiming that the regulation was required to maintain the sovereignty of the rupiah [Indonesia’s fiat currency] as the country’s legal tender.

He went on to detail additional restrictive measures by the bank, stating:

We [will] also prevent arbitrage opportunities, unhealthy business practices and business controls by parties outside the legal reach of Indonesia’s laws that could damage the structure of industries here.

Digital currencies are also potentially used for terrorism financing and money laundering. Martowardojo has now doubled down on the bank’s hostile stance toward cryptocurrencies after threatening bitcoin adopters in the country. In remarks earlier in October, the central bank chief said; those using bitcoin as a payment method “will be dealt with.”

New rules which will come out in 2018 will include financial technology companies. Also startups under its preview, according to the central banker.

According to CCN Indonesia; the chairman of Indonesian Task Force (SWI) under the Financial Services Authority, Tongam Tobing said last week:

We urge you to invest in logic, not Bitcoin, so people do not go there…People, if you want to invest, do not invest in virtual money, but invest in the legal [assets] that can improve the economy of Indonesia.