Indonesia launches national stablecoin: Rupiah is digitally strengthened!

Indonesia launches national stablecoin: Rupiah is digitally strengthened!

The Indonesian Central Bank, BankIndonesia, plans to launch a national stablecoin that will be backed by government bonds. Governor Perry Warjiyo calls this new financial product Indonesia’s “national version of a stablecoin.” The aim of this initiative is to strengthen the rupiah in an increasingly competitive regional market.

As part of this development, Warjiyo announced the creation of central bank digital securities, which are tokenized variants of Indonesia's government bonds. These digital securities are intended to be pegged with the digital rupiah, Indonesia's digital currency. According to the information, the digital securities will be derived from the digital rupiah and backed by government bonds. Work on the digital rupiah began as early as 2022, and the first phase, called “Immediate State,” is expected to be completed by the end of 2024.

Integration into the existing financial system

Bank Indonesia plans to integrate the digital rupiah into existing payment systems as well as financial market infrastructure. This is intended to support both domestic and cross-border transactions. The central bank has already successfully completed the proof of concept for its Wholesale Rupiah Digital Cash Ledger. These steps are in line with Bank Indonesia's three pillars: expanding adoption and innovation, strengthening industrial structures and maintaining industrial stability.

In Indonesia, the OJK (Financial Services Authority) has noted an increase in the use of stablecoins, especially after the rupiah hit a record low of Rp16,850 per US dollar in April 2025. Although stablecoins are not yet recognized as an official payment method, they play an important role in their usage and transaction volume.

Regulation and market analysis

The OJK has already introduced rules for stablecoins, which include, among other things, compliance with anti-money laundering regulations and regular reporting by traders. Still, there are concerns that Bank Indonesia is lagging behind other major states that are also working on developing their own stablecoins. In Asia in particular, countries such as Hong Kong and China are pushing to develop stablecoins pegged to local currencies to combat the dominance of the US dollar in the market.

Hong Kong, for example, is seeking support from the Chinese central government to explore offshore renminbi-pegged stablecoins. Additionally, both Hong Kong and China are accelerating the development of their respective digital currencies, the e-HKD and the digital yuan. In this rapidly evolving environment, Bank Indonesia believes it has a responsibility to act quickly.