Dasco Praises BI's Move to Reduce Reliance on US Dollar

Deputy Speaker of the Indonesian House of Representatives (DPR RI) Sufmi Dasco Ahmad has expressed high appreciation for Bank Indonesia’s (BI) strategic move to strengthen the rupiah exchange rate. This concrete effort is considered to have successfully created a positive trend for national economic stability while reducing dependence on the United States (US) dollar. The appreciation refers to the Bilateral Currency Swap Arrangement (BCSA) signed by BI Governor Perry Warjiyo and People’s Bank of China (PBOC) Governor Pan Gongsheng in Shanghai, China, on 11 June 2026. This cooperation expands the implementation of Local Currency Transaction (LCT) to include the Hong Kong region. “The agreement allows transactions between Indonesia, Mainland China, and Hong Kong to be conducted using the exchange rate or Renminbi without having to rely on the US dollar,” Dasco said in a written statement in Jakarta on Sunday (14/6). In addition to the LCT expansion involving Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) Eddie Yue, the cooperation also agreed on the implementation of cross-border QRIS between Indonesia and China. This step enables business actors in both countries to conduct payment transactions directly and efficiently. Dasco revealed that this inter-country QRIS system has integrated 191 service providers in China and 24 service providers in Indonesia. This integration is expected to significantly facilitate economic activities on the ground. Furthermore, Dasco highlighted the great potential of using LCT given that the volume of Indonesia’s export-import transactions with China in 2025 reached US$154.5 billion. By switching to rupiah and Renminbi, pressure on the need for US dollars in bilateral trade can be drastically reduced. “This is a very serious effort to reduce the need for US dollars for trade transactions, including the use of cross-border QRIS between Indonesia and China. This is being done by BI to strengthen the rupiah exchange rate,” he concluded.