IAW Reveals Risk Analysis: Dormant Accounts Could Become Time Bombs

Jakarta – Indonesian Audit Watch (IAW) has unveiled a risk map for the governance of dormant accounts in Himbara banks, following the case of hundreds of billions of rupiah being siphoned from one state-owned bank in 17 minutes via 42 transactions in mid-2024, which is seen as concrete evidence of banking supervision failures.

IAW emphasises that there is no official report from the Financial Audit Board (BPK) specifically auditing Himbara banks on dormant accounts, yet this situation amplifies risks as inactive accounts are viewed as latent vulnerabilities that financial crime syndicates could exploit at any time.

“There is no specific thematic audit on dormant accounts. That’s precisely the problem. We’re sitting on a time bomb without knowing when it will explode,” said IAW Founding Secretary Iskandar Sitorus in Jakarta on Friday, 1 May 2026.

PPATK data bolsters these concerns, uncovering 2,115 dormant government accounts holding up to Rp530.55 billion, including Rp169.37 billion in Himbara banks, highlighting weak oversight of public funds that should be under strict control.

In its analysis, IAW states that one state-owned bank currently poses the lowest risk, owing to relatively open transparency in its anti-fraud system, from prevention and detection to investigation and ongoing evaluation, accessible to the public.

Nevertheless, IAW warns that transparency is not an absolute guarantee of security unless tested in real practice, particularly against extreme transaction patterns like those in the BNI case.

“Mandiri is the most open in explaining its system. But transparency must be proven. If it’s never tested, it’s just good on paper,” Iskandar remarked.

Meanwhile, another state-owned bank is placed in the medium-risk category with the greatest potential impact, given its vast customer base encompassing social assistance accounts, SMEs, and government programmes that could generate a very large number of dormant accounts.

“The larger the customer base, the greater the potential for dormant accounts. This is simple mathematical law, not an assumption,” Iskandar explained.

Other state-owned banks are also assessed as needing proof, due to limited public transparency on dormant account oversight systems, despite potential risks from project accounts, escrow, and completed mortgages that remain open.