Hery Gunardi Outlines Banking Strategy to Tackle Global Economic Uncertainty

Jakarta (ANTARA) – The President of PERBANAS and also the President Director of Bank Rakyat Indonesia (BRI), Hery Gunardi, stated that amid increasingly complex global economic dynamics, the Indonesian banking industry is still showing strong resilience. However, several anticipatory strategies need to be prepared to maintain financial sector stability and sustain growth going forward. This was conveyed by Hery Gunardi at the CFO PERBANAS forum themed “Driving Acceleration with Accountability,” held in Jakarta on Friday, 6 March. In his presentation, Hery Gunardi explained that the fundamentals of the national banking industry through early 2026 remain solid. This is reflected in January 2026 credit growth of 9.96% year-on-year (YoY), higher than the 2025 level around 9.63% YoY. At the same time, Third-Party Funds (DPK) grew by 10.8% (YoY). The Non-Performing Loan (NPL) ratio remained in the vicinity of 2.14%. Meanwhile, the industry’s capital resilience remains strong with a Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) of around 25.9%. “Some profitability indicators are facing moderate pressure as operating costs rise. Nevertheless, banks must remain vigilant. Although the overall banking sector outlook remains fairly positive, we must stay anticipative of various potential risks ahead,” he said. According to Hery, prolonged global geopolitical tensions could drive energy inflation and food prices, suppress consumer purchasing power, and slow economic activity. At the same time, economic uncertainty could also weigh on the performance of the business sector, potentially elevating NPL risk, which would ultimately require banks to be more selective in lending and to strengthen risk management and asset quality. Therefore, Hery noted that the banking industry needs to strengthen various risk mitigation measures to maintain financial sector stability. Specific mitigation protocols must be prepared by banks. First, strengthen risk management by conducting sectoral stress tests on portfolios in sectors such as transportation, logistics, and manufacturing that are highly dependent on fuel, establishing an early warning system for worsening NPL, and tightening credit discipline and risk-based pricing. Second, banks need to ensure adequate liquidity to face potential capital flow volatility by strengthening the Liquidity Coverage Ratio (LCR) and Net Stable Funding Ratio (NSFR). There is no alternative: banks must have sufficient cash flow buffers. Third, Indonesian banks must manage exchange rate risk and foreign exchange liquidity by keeping a conservative net foreign exchange position (PDN), strengthening hedging strategies for FX exposure, and managing foreign currency maturity mismatches. According to Hery, these steps are important to ensure the availability of FX liquidity for strategic sectors, including exporters and importers, to maintain smooth national trade activity. In line with Hery Gunardi, OJK Deputy Commissioner for Regulations, Licensing and Quality Control, Deden Firman Hendarsyah, stated that the national banking sector remains fairly resilient, particularly from the capital indicators. “Similarly, liquidity conditions are ample and all major indicators are above the regulator’s minimal thresholds,” Deden concluded.