Rising Fraud: Puteri Komarudin Highlights Misuse of Bank Accounts

Puteri Komarudin, a member of Commission XI of the Indonesian House of Representatives from the Golkar Party, has highlighted the widespread practice of fraud involving the misuse of bank accounts. This was stated during a Public Hearing (RDPU) of Commission XI with national banking associations as part of the discussion on the Revision of Law Number 4 of 2023 concerning the Development and Strengthening of the Financial Services Sector (RUU PPSK) on Tuesday.

Puteri stated that, to date, the banking sector is still frequently exploited to facilitate illegal transactions, ranging from various forms of fraud to illegal online loans. “Funds from such activities are often collected through bank accounts. Although the PPSK Law established in 2023 includes criminal sanctions, including for illegal online lending operators, in practice, we still see that bank accounts, both in state-owned banks (Himbara) and private banks, are frequently used for these various illegal transactions,” said Puteri.

Previously, the Financial Services Authority (OJK), alongside members of the Task Force for the Eradication of Illegal Financial Activities (Satgas PASTI) and supported by banking industry associations and payment systems, formed the Indonesia Anti-Scam Centre (IASC). As of 29 April 2024, the IASC had received reports against 932,138 accounts, of which 485,758 accounts have been blocked.

Consequently, Puteri questioned the steps banking associations must take to strengthen efforts to prevent illegal transactions through the banking system. “For those of you who deal with this issue daily, are there issues within the regulatory aspects? Or is there a need to strengthen the existing Satgas PASTI? Or, what are the actual steps required so that all illegal transactions can be controlled and mitigated, ensuring more members of the public do not fall victim?” she asked.

Puteri expressed hope for a solution to handle illegal transactions within the banking sector. “I hope that all the system reinforcements you have proposed and presented can be truly implemented, so they can strengthen the prevention and handling of illegal transactions in the banking sector more effectively and comprehensively,” she said.

Meanwhile, the Vice Chairman of Perbanas, Nixon Napitupulu, noted that Indonesia has policy experience that could serve as a reference for strengthening financial supervision, such as the implementation of blacklists for cheques and bilyet giro, as well as the Financial Information Service System (SLIK). “My suggestion is that all accounts linked to illegal online lending or online gambling operating in Indonesia that have been identified by Bank Indonesia, OJK, or PPATK should be included in a national blacklist. This way, we will not open any accounts as they are already blacklisted, and this information should be shared across the entire banking industry,” concluded Nixon.