Live TikTok with Son Reveals Public Complaints to Purbaya on China's Dominance in Indonesia's E-commerce

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com - Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa admitted to receiving many complaints from the public regarding the dominance of Chinese companies in Indonesia’s marketplace platforms.

These complaints were voiced by netizens during his live broadcast on the TikTok application with his son.

Purbaya stated that he learned many new things from the moment.

Purbaya gave an example, such as Tokopedia, although this e-commerce is made in Indonesia, the majority of its shares are now owned by a Chinese company.

Similarly, the TikTok platform, which can be used for online shopping, is a company originating from China.

Tokopedia and TikTok are indeed interconnected.

Meanwhile, 25 percent of the shares are still owned by PT GoTo Gojek Tokopedia Tbk (GOTO). “I’m thinking about how to return the marketplace (to local control), (so it’s) not just dominated by China. For example, Tokopedia is controlled by China, almost entirely. TikTok too,” said Purbaya.

According to him, these complaints indicate that Indonesia is providing a vast market to China, which has the potential to disrupt domestic business actors.

“It could be said that digitalisation like this seems to be handing the market directly to China,” he said.

Purbaya stated that his side is currently studying various steps to ensure healthy business competition, especially to curb China’s dominance.

“Actually, I’m thinking, is there a domestic company that can be revived to compete with China’s dominance, even in this domestic market, in the marketplace sector,” he said.