Purbaya Moves Rp2 Trillion in Bond Market to Stabilise Rupiah
Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa has begun an initial step to help Bank Indonesia maintain rupiah stability by intervening in the bond market. The move comes as the rupiah has weakened beyond Rp17,700 per US dollar.
The state treasurer is using Rp2 trillion per day from the government’s cash balance to ensure government bond prices stay under control. The mechanism is a cash-management-based intervention, by absorbing Government Securities (SBN) in the market.
Purbaya said the step had started on Thursday, 14 May 2026. ‘Yesterday I already targeted absorbing Rp2 trillion, but we could only absorb Rp600 billion. That means what was sold was small. So we are ensuring bond prices remain under control,’ he said after the open session of the Debottlenecking Task Force at the Finance Ministry, Jakarta, 19 May 2026.
The minister outlined two ways to help stabilise. First through a bond-stabilisation framework, second through cash management of the government’s cash. Currently only the cash-management step is being used. If the framework is implemented, the Finance Ministry plans to involve a Special Mission Vehicle (SMV) under the ministry. But the second step has not yet been taken because he believes conditions are still relatively contained.
The plan to use Rp2 trillion from the government cash to enter the bond market was disclosed after a meeting at the State Palace in Jakarta on Monday, 18 May 2026. ‘I want to enter Rp2 trillion per day,’ he said.
Her strategy involves buying back government debt securities in the market. He explained that the money used to buy the bonds is not lost and will circulate back into the government’s coffers. ‘So there will be a bit of positive sentiment in the bond market. Usually when sentiment is positive there, foreign investors also tend to enter and the rupiah tends to be contained,’ he said.
Purbaya did not detail the source of funds or the total budget required. ‘I have Rp420 trillion in cash that is SAL (saldo anggaran lebih); I can rotate that there (in the bond market). I could also rotate my cash there.’