Airlangga says gold bullion ecosystem adds economic value

Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto has said that the bullion ecosystem, or gold bank, provides added value to the economy by transforming gold that was previously idle and passive into productive assets within the financial system.

“This is also an added value in itself, because previously gold was simply considered unused in banking assets,” Airlangga said on the sidelines of the SUAR Forum 2026 in BSD City, Tangerang, Banten, on Friday.

Airlangga further stated that the gold bank, which has been operating for approximately one year since its launch last year, has managed 153 tonnes of gold worth approximately Rp360 trillion, or around 20 billion US dollars.

“We can see that with the bullion ecosystem and this gold bank, we are managing nearly 180 tonnes of gold, valued at Rp360 trillion,” he said.

According to Airlangga, Indonesia’s bullion ecosystem has the potential to record even better performance, given that interest in gold investment and management remains very high because it is considered safe as a long-term asset, or safe haven.

In addition, gold is also seen as increasingly attractive through the form of Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs), which are gold-based mutual funds whose participation units are traded on the stock exchange in the same way as share transactions.

“The increase has been extraordinary because gold has become a safe haven investment. Moreover, we have also been promoting gold derivatives in the form of ETFs. The potential to attract investment and gold management remains very high,” Airlangga said.

Meanwhile, the national gold bank service was first launched in February 2025 by President Prabowo Subianto.

According to data from the Coordinating Ministry for Economic Affairs as of March 2026, the performance of the Bullion Financial Services Institution, PT Pegadaian, shows that the number of customers increased from 3.2 million in February 2025 to 5.6 million in February 2026.

In the same period, public gold savings also increased from 10.5 tonnes to 19.25 tonnes.

On the other hand, BSI’s total gold management, covering instalment purchases, pawnbroking, and gold savings before the launch of Bullion Business Activities in January 2025, rose from 16.85 tonnes to 22.5 tonnes in February 2026.

Gold savings customers increased from 531,329 in December 2025 to 766,742 in February 2026.