Prabowo instructs PNM interest rates to be below 9 percent

Jakarta (ANTARA) - President Prabowo Subianto has instructed that interest rates for the Permodalan Nasional Madani (PNM) programme be lowered to below 9 percent. “This is a political decision; I have decided that the interest for Permodalan Nasional Madani, for credit to pre-prosperous families, from 24 percent, we must lower it to below 10 percent, must be below 9 percent,” said President Prabowo at the Attorney General’s Office in Jakarta on Wednesday. President Prabowo highlighted the inequality in financing access, which has burdened micro-entrepreneurs with higher interest rates compared to large business owners. Furthermore, President Prabowo noted that large business owners receive interest rates of around 9-10 percent, while micro-entrepreneurs face rates up to 24 percent. “Imagine, the rich get 9 percent, the poor get 24 percent. This is a Pancasila state; I don’t understand it,” he said. The President even requested that the new interest rate scheme be pressed below 9 percent. According to him, the state must not allow small communities to bear a heavier financing burden than upper economic groups. “We will study where our system is weak, where our shortcomings are, and fix them. Our benchmark is Pancasila and the 1945 Constitution, not just slogans. We want to realise a truly just situation,” added President Prabowo. PNM is a subsidiary of PT Bank Rakyat Indonesia (Persero) Tbk (BRI), which is now a member of Danantara Indonesia. The Finance Ministry plans to make PNM a subsidiary under one of the Ministry of Finance’s Special Mission Vehicles (SMV), such as PT Sarana Multi Infrastruktur (SMI) or the Government Investment Centre (PIP). This PNM acquisition plan was proposed as one solution to smooth the distribution of People’s Business Credit (KUR).