BI Governor Perry Warjiyo Resigns, the Only One to Serve Two Terms

Bank Indonesia (BI) Governor Perry Warjiyo has decided to resign from his position, effective Saturday, 25 July 2026. The resignation letter has been submitted to President Prabowo Subianto. In its official statement, BI stated that Perry resigned voluntarily due to personal reasons. “The resignation of Mr Perry Warjiyo from the position of Governor of Bank Indonesia is voluntary due to personal reasons,” the statement read, as quoted on Monday, 27 July 2026. In accordance with Article 48 paragraph (1) letter a of Law Number 23 of 1999 concerning Bank Indonesia, as last amended by Law Number 4 of 2026 concerning the Development and Strengthening of the Financial Sector, the BI Board of Governors held a meeting on Sunday, 26 July 2026. During the meeting, BI Senior Deputy Governor Destry Damayanti was appointed as acting BI Governor in accordance with Article 50 paragraph (2) of the BI Law. The BI Board of Governors confirmed that the implementation of the central bank’s duties and authorities will continue, ranging from maintaining the stability of the rupiah’s value and preserving the stability of the payment system to helping maintain financial system stability. BI also emphasised that it will continue to prioritise good and professional institutional governance and will keep synergising and coordinating with the government in carrying out their respective duties. Perry Warjiyo’s resignation concludes his leadership at Bank Indonesia, which lasted for more than eight years since 2018. Looking back, the history of Bank Indonesia began on 1 July 1953, when De Javasche Bank officially transformed into Bank Indonesia after the government nationalised it by purchasing approximately 97% of DJB’s shares. This change was reinforced through Law Number 11 of 1953 concerning the Principles of Bank Indonesia, which replaced the De Javasche Bank Wet 1922. Since then, Bank Indonesia has officially stood as the central bank of the Republic of Indonesia. Sjafruddin Prawiranegara then became the first Governor of Bank Indonesia after Indonesia’s independence. He had previously led De Javasche Bank from 1951 until the institution changed into Bank Indonesia in 1953. Perry is the only BI governor in the Reform Era to serve two terms and the longest, at 8 years, 3 months, and 8 days. He was first inaugurated on 16 April 2018. However, the longest-serving BI governor to hold the position is Rachmat Saleh, who served from 1973 to 1983. Since its official establishment, Bank Indonesia has been led by 16 definitive governors. In its journey, the position of BI Governor has also been temporarily filled by acting officials. Miranda Goeltom carried out these duties from May to July 2009 after Boediono resigned to run as a vice-presidential candidate. Afterwards, Darmin Nasution became acting governor from July 2009 before being officially inaugurated as BI Governor in September 2010. Currently, the position is temporarily held by Senior Deputy Governor Destry Damayanti after Perry Warjiyo’s resignation. Destry will carry out duties as acting BI Governor until a new governor is appointed. “The job of a central bank is to worry.” This statement, once made by former Federal Reserve Vice Chair Alice Rivlin in the 1990s, became relevant again after the Covid-19 pandemic shook the global economy. Inflation soared, food and energy prices skyrocketed due to war and geopolitical tensions, while central banks were forced to take extraordinary measures to maintain economic stability. Perry Warjiyo was appointed and served in these two periods. Perry’s name was first proposed as BI governor in February 2018 by President Joko Widodo. His name was proposed again by Jokowi in 2023 as BI governor. Amid a global situation full of uncertainty and the post-pandemic period at that time, Perry was appointed as the sole candidate for BI Governor for the 2023-2028 period, continuing his previous term which began in 2018. At the time, Jokowi assessed that the coordination between fiscal and monetary policy under Perry’s leadership was running well. In a world still overshadowed by crisis, the President emphasised that the government did not want to take risks by changing the captain of the central bank. The decision was later approved by the DPR through a fit and proper test in March 2023. Perry was officially re-inaugurated on 24 May 2023, making him the first BI governor in the reform era to be trusted to lead for two consecutive terms. Born in Sukoharjo in 1959, Perry Warjiyo is an economist and a graduate of the Faculty of Economics at Gadjah Mada University who later pursued Master’s and Ph.D. degrees at Iowa State University, United States. His career at Bank Indonesia began in 1984. Over nearly four decades, Perry held various strategic positions, ranging from economic research, monetary policy, and macroprudential to foreign exchange management and international relations. Before becoming BI Governor, Perry served as BI Deputy Governor for the 2013-2018 period. He also served as Executive Director of the International Monetary Fund representing 13 member countries of the South-East Asia Voting Group. In his second term, Perry did not only focus on maintaining the stability of the rupiah and inflation. BI also introduced various new instruments to deepen the domestic financial market. Some of the instruments launched include Foreign Exchange Term Deposits to accommodate export proceeds, Bank Indonesia Rupiah Securities to attract foreign capital flows while strengthening money market deepening, Bank Indonesia Foreign Exchange Securities, and Bank Indonesia Foreign Exchange Sukuk as new instruments to strengthen rupiah exchange rate stability and the domestic foreign exchange market. These instruments became part of his legacy.