May 21, 2026 | 10:34 pm
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Indonesian central bank, Bank Indonesia, has expanded its natural resource export revenue framework to allow exporters to deposit non-US dollar foreign currencies into domestic state-owned banks (Himbara).The expansion of the central bank’s term-deposit scheme enables exporters to place non-US dollar foreign exchange earnings in state-owned banks for tenors of up to 12 months.Speaking at a regulatory briefing in Jakarta on Thursday, May 21, Bank Indonesia Governor Perry Warjiyo noted that while foreign exchange proceeds for natural resource exports (known locally as DHE SDA) were previously dominated by the US dollar, businesses can now make greater use of alternative currencies, including the Chinese yuan."We are expanding the currency options beyond the US dollar," he said. "Bank Indonesia has been deepening the domestic foreign exchange market, and the Chinese yuan is already actively traded onshore."According to him, The policy shift aligns with the central bank's broader push to deepen the domestic forex market through Local Currency Transactions (LCT), particularly with China.Perry revealed that bilateral local currency settlements with China reached over US$25 billion annually last year. So far in 2026, those volumes have surged to roughly US$3.7 billion per month."Following agreements with domestic banks and the People's Bank of China, businesses holding Chinese yuan can now execute spot, swap, and forward transactions directly within the domestic market," Perry added.The central bank's adjustment provides operational flexibility for commodity exporters ahead of strict new government regulations set to take effect on June 1, 2026, under Government Regulations No. 2 and No. 21 of 2026.Under the incoming rules, natural resource exporters are required to deposit 100 percent of their foreign exchange proceeds into the Indonesian financial system or repatriate them with a 100 percent compliance rate.He explained that natural resource exporters are required to place DHE with a minimum retention of 30 percent for the oil and gas industry and 100 percent for the non-oil and gas industry in a special account in the Indonesian financial system.The placement is for a minimum of three months for the oil and gas sector and 12 months for the non-oil and gas sector.Significantly for foreign investors, the government has lowered the conversion limit for foreign exchange export proceeds into rupiah from 100 percent to 50 percent.Read: OJK Prepares Incentives to Support Export Earnings RetentionClick here to get the latest news updates from Tempo on Google News
