Jakarta, Indonesia Sentinel — Bank Indonesia (BI) is moving forward with the development of the Digital Rupiah, the country’s official central bank digital currency (CBDC).
Speaking at the Indonesia Digital Economy and Finance Festival (FEKDI) x Indonesia Fintech Summit and Expo (IFSE) on Thursday (Oct. 30), BI Governor Perry Warjiyo said the digital currency will function similarly to a stablecoin but will remain fully under the control of the central bank.
“We’re developing how the Digital Rupiah will be issued by Bank Indonesia. God willing, we’ll also create a digital version of SRBI, backed by government securities. This will be Indonesia’s official national version of a stablecoin,” Warjiyo said.
Deputy Governor Filianingsih Hendarta, during a high-level discussion, added that the project is entering its second experimental phase.
“Digital rupiah and stablecoins are trending topics. We’re now in phase two of experimentation, after focusing on retail, we’re now moving into the securities segment,” she explained.
The “Garuda Project”: Blueprint for Indonesia’s Digital Currency
The Digital Rupiah is part of Bank Indonesia’s five key initiatives outlined in its Indonesian Payment System Blueprint (BSPI) 2030, under a project known as “Project Garuda.”
The Digital Rupiah represents Indonesia’s fiat currency in digital form and can be used like physical money, e-money, or payment cards such as debit and credit cards.
While it shares characteristics with stablecoins in terms of price stability, the Digital Rupiah is not a cryptocurrency. It is an officially issued CBDC, backed and regulated by Bank Indonesia.
According to BI, the project aims to preserve the sovereignty of the rupiah, as mandated by Indonesia’s Currency Law and Financial Sector Development Law (UU P2SK), strengthen Indonesia’s role in the global financial system, and accelerate digital economic integration nationwide.
Read Also:
Indonesia Expands Cross-Border QRIS Payment Trials to South Korea After Success in Japan and China
Multi-Phase Development Toward Full Integration
Under the BSPI 2030 framework, BI’s Digital Rupiah development will proceed through two main stages.
Immediate Phase, which completed in 2024, focused on testing the wholesale version (w-Digital Rupiah). And Intermediate Phase, expanding to financial market use cases, particularly in securities ledger development, which is currently underway.
BI expects the Digital Rupiah to serve as a legal digital payment instrument across Indonesia, a core monetary policy tool in the digital era, and a catalyst for financial inclusion and innovation.
Ultimately, the central bank hopes the Digital Rupiah will help boost overall financial system efficiency and position Indonesia at the forefront of digital currency innovation in the region.
(Raidi/Agung)
