BMRI Makes History as First Indonesian Bank to Join CIPS Network
Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia — PT Bank Mandiri (Persero) Tbk. (BMRI) has marked a new milestone in the national banking industry by becoming the first bank in Indonesia to be directly connected to the Cross-Border Interbank Payment System (CIPS), the yuan (Renminbi/RMB)-based international payment infrastructure under the auspices of the People’s Bank of China (PBoC).
The inauguration of Bank Mandiri’s membership as a Direct Participant of CIPS took place in Shanghai, China, on Thursday (11/6/2026). The event was attended by Bank Indonesia Governor Perry Warjiyo, People’s Bank of China Governor Pan Gongsheng, CIPS Chairman Wang Hongbo, and Bank Mandiri Operations Director Timothy Utama.
The status as a Direct Participant makes Bank Mandiri the only Indonesian bank with direct access to the international RMB payment network. This step is considered capable of strengthening financial connectivity between Indonesia and China, which has long been one of Indonesia’s largest trading partners.
Bank Mandiri Operations Director Timothy Utama stated that the membership is a strategic step to strengthen international transaction service capabilities while supporting the growing economic relationship between the two countries.
“As a Direct Participant of CIPS, Bank Mandiri can deliver more efficient and reliable RMB transaction services, while supporting the growth of trade and investment between Indonesia and China and strengthening the connectivity of the national financial industry with the global payment ecosystem,” Timothy said in an official statement.
With a direct connection to CIPS, Bank Mandiri can process RMB-based transactions more quickly, transparently, and efficiently compared to conventional schemes that generally involve more intermediaries. The integration is also said to be able to increase certainty in cross-border transaction settlement, especially for corporate customers with trade and investment activities with partners in China.
This step is also in line with efforts to strengthen bilateral transaction cooperation between Indonesia and China, which was previously encouraged by Bank Indonesia and the People’s Bank of China through the Local Currency Transaction (LCT) scheme. Through this mechanism, trade and investment transactions can increasingly be conducted using local currencies without having to depend on the US dollar as an intermediary currency.
For Bank Mandiri, direct access to CIPS has the potential to strengthen its international transaction services, trade finance, treasury, and yuan-based cross-border payment services. The company is also extending the service hours for RMB-based international fund transfers to accommodate the increasing needs of customers.
With China’s position as one of Indonesia’s main trading partners, the existence of a more integrated payment infrastructure is considered an important factor in increasing the efficiency of cross-border transactions and the competitiveness of national business players.
Going forward, Bank Mandiri stated that it will continue to expand collaboration with various global strategic partners and develop RMB-based services to strengthen its role as a provider of international financial solutions for customers.