Indonesian ministry of trade tightens regulations for future brokers

Indonesia's trade ministry is putting in place rules to better govern new entities such as crypto asset exchanges and online brokers. Under the new rule two-thirds of the board of directors and commissioners need to be Indonesian citizens and reside in the country.

Moving forward, every party that conducts futures trading activities in Indonesia must have a permit from the Commodity Futures Trading Regulatory Agency (CoFTRA). These companies will be subject to and comply with the provisions of the laws and regulations in force in Indonesia.

Even though they claim to have legality from overseas regulators, companies offering futures trading in Indonesia are still required to have a permit from CoFTRA,” head of CoFTRA Didid Noordiatmoko said. Noordiatomoko added that routine checks will be conducted online with the monitoring of website domains and social media accounts that carry out promotions, and advertisements in the space.

This supervision and observation, as well as blocking, are a preventive measure against potential losses to the community, Noordiatomoko added.

From January to August 2022, the Ministry of Trade through the CoFTRA has blocked 760 entities consisting of 682 website domains, 48 social media pages, 17 applications on Google Play, 12 applications on the Apple store.

Noordiatomoko said, that transacting with futures brokers who do not have a business license from CoFTRA is very risky. CoFTRA as the regulator cannot facilitate customers in mediating in the event of a dispute (dispute) between the customer and the unlicensed entity.

Head of the Bureau of Legislation and Enforcement, Aldison added, that the entity also does not have a representative office in Indonesia. If the customer feels aggrieved, no party can be held responsible. The legality of its existence abroad is also uncertain and this requires no small amount of money in resolving the dispute.

“In addition, CoFTRA is also unable to ensure the integrity of the management and financial integrity of the entity. The security of the funds deposited as transaction capital cannot be guaranteed because it does not use a segregated account approved by CoFTRA,” Aldison explained.

People who will transact in the field are advised to first learn the background of the company, transaction procedures and dispute resolution.

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