Jakarta (VNA) – Indonesia's national gold bank, or bullion ecosystem, has accumulated approximately 153 tonnes of gold in the 17 months since its launch, the Coordinating Ministry for Economic Affairs revealed.
The ministry’s Deputy for Coordination of Management and Development of State-Owned Enterprises Ferry Irawan said the gold is currently held through state-backed financial institutions, including state-owned pawnbroker PT Pegadaian and Islamic lender Bank Syariah Indonesia.
“This is something we will continue to develop," Ferry said as quoted by Indonesia’s national news agency Antara.
Launched on February 20, 2025, the national gold bank was designed to monetise Indonesia’s vast domestic gold holdings, integrating physical gold into the formal financial system. Developing the bullion ecosystem is also part of government efforts to deepen the domestic financial market and strengthen economic resilience amid rising global uncertainty.
Beyond the bullion bank, Ferry highlighted several key financial reforms the government carried out to maintain investor confidence. These initiatives include strengthening financial market governance, increasing transparency, and expanding the implementation of local currency transactions (LCT) with key trading partners to reduce dependency on foreign currencies.
Since its inception in 2018, the LCT framework has been established with six partners: Malaysia, Thailand, Japan, China, the Republic of Korea, and the United Arab Emirates.
Despite global economic pressures, international institutions maintain a positive growth outlook for Indonesia. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) projects the country's economy to grow by 5% in 2026 while the Asian Development Bank (ADB) maintains a projection of 5.2%./.
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