Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia \u2014 Crowds gathered at currency exchange\noffices in Central Jakarta on Monday (19 October 2026). CNBC Indonesia\nobserved that Valuta Inti Prima (VIP) Money Changer in Menteng was among\nthe places chosen by customers.<\/p>\n
At 11am Western Indonesian Time, almost all the counters at VIP Money\nChanger were busy with people looking to exchange their money. The\nactivity came as the rupiah weakened against several foreign currencies,\nincluding the US dollar. According to Refinitiv data, the rupiah was\ntrading at Rp18,045 per US dollar.<\/p>\n
Some customers were selling US dollars and exchanging them for rupiah\namid the currency\u2019s weakness. Many others were selling different foreign\ncurrencies.<\/p>\n
Zulkarnaen, 35, for example, chose to sell Brunei dollars for rupiah\nat a rate of Rp14,030. He said he was taking advantage of the higher\nbuying rate for the Brunei dollar, which usually stands at around\nRp13,000. He exchanged B$5,000.<\/p>\n
At Rp14,030, Zulkarnaen received Rp70.15 million for his B$5,000. At\na rate of Rp13,000, he would have received only Rp65 million.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s more a case of taking advantage while the rate is up. It\u2019s\nusually around Rp13,000 and something; now it\u2019s Rp14,000, so I thought,\nwhy not?\u201d Zulkarnaen told CNBC Indonesia on Monday (19 October\n2026).<\/p>\n
Zulkarnaen said the rupiah was currently weakening against other\ncurrencies. The upside, he said, was that the exchange-rate difference\ngave him money to put into savings.<\/p>\n
PT Daffa Indo Valuta also said it had handled a high volume of\ncurrency exchanges that day. The Kwitang-based exchange office said it\nhad bought a large amount of Singapore dollars, meaning many customers\nhad chosen to sell the currency.<\/p>\n
Its buying rate was Rp15,950 for S$1,000 notes and Rp14,000 for S$100\nnotes. The office said customers were selling Singapore dollars in large\nnumbers because the currency\u2019s exchange rate had risen significantly in\nrecent weeks.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis morning, we had about S$20,000 come in [for sale],\u201d said Aris\nPermana, a supervisor at PT Daffa Indo Valuta.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/taking-advantage-indonesian-cashes-in-by-exchanging-brunei-dollars-for-rupiah-1792399847", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }