Jakarta ( WNAM MONITORING): Indonesia’s state-owned banks Bank Rakyat Indonesia (BRI) and Bank Syariah Indonesia (BSI) have coordinated to implement a plan to open bank accounts for people across the country, Danantara Indonesia CEO Rosan Roeslani said on Wednesday.
The initiative is aimed at boosting financial inclusion and financial literacy, Roeslani said, with BRI to facilitate account openings nationwide and BSI to serve customers in Aceh province.
“BRI and BSI have already coordinated, including at the management level, to implement the plan so that account opening across Indonesia through BRI, and in Aceh through BSI, can be carried out as soon as possible,” he said at the Presidential Palace Complex in Jakarta.
Roeslani said the coordination was intended to ensure the mass account-opening program could be implemented quickly.
Regarding a proposal to provide an initial deposit of Rp50,000 for each account (about US$3), he said the funding mechanism was still being designed.
“The mechanism is currently being designed. It will be done soon,” he said.
President Prabowo Subianto discussed financial inclusion and literacy during a limited meeting on Monday as part of a broader review of economic issues.
He also instructed the National Council for Financial Inclusion, which includes Bank Indonesia, the finance ministry, and the Financial Services Authority (OJK), to prepare the technical aspects of the program.
The mass account-opening plan is also intended to facilitate the distribution of cash social assistance, the government has said.
