SMEs Can Become a Pillar for Banking Amid Global Pressures
Strengthening the micro, small, and medium-sized enterprise (MSME) segment is considered an important strategy for banking in facing increasing global economic pressures. Senior Economist and Associate Faculty at the Indonesian Banking Development Institute, Ryan Kiryanto, stated that historically, MSMEs have demonstrated better resilience in facing crises, whether from domestic or external factors.
“MSMEs possess high agility and flexibility in dealing with economic pressures, including the impacts of geopolitics such as global conflicts,” he said.
He also appreciated the steps taken by several state-owned banks to strengthen credit distribution to the MSME sector, particularly those aligned with government programmes. Nevertheless, Ryan emphasised the importance of applying prudent principles in credit distribution, including through 5C analysis—Character, Capacity, Capital, Condition, and Collateral—to maintain a healthy portfolio quality. Additionally, banks are reminded to remain focused on their respective flagship sectors so that credit expansion does not compromise business stability.
“As state-owned banks, it is reasonable to support government programmes, including those of a populist nature. However, they must still align with each bank’s expertise and business focus,” he explained.
In this context, strengthening the MSME sector is seen not only as support for the people’s economy but also as an opportunity for banking to maintain asset and revenue growth amid global pressures. The wide reach of state-owned banks to the regions is considered an advantage in tapping into the potential of local businesses that are promising, in line with the characteristics of each area.
For example, Bank Mandiri is one of the banks that has recorded positive performance through credit distribution to the productive sector. As of February 2026, Bank Mandiri’s loans reached Rp1,513.1 trillion, or grew 15.7% year-on-year (YoY), followed by third-party funds (DPK) of Rp1,644.8 trillion, which increased 16.3% YoY.
Bank Mandiri’s Director of Finance & Strategy, Novita Widya Anggraini, stated that this growth was also driven by increasing digital transaction activities, particularly through Livin’ by Mandiri. Bank Mandiri’s net profit was recorded to grow 16.7% YoY to Rp8.9 trillion as of February 2026, in line with an increase in commission-based income from digital services.
In addition, the transaction volume of Livin’ by Mandiri reached more than 738.7 million transactions since the beginning of the year, or grew around 28% YoY, driven by increasing use of digital services by the public.
From the intermediation side, net interest income (NII) reached Rp13.7 trillion, or grew 9.16% YoY, while operational efficiency was reflected in the decline of the cost-to-income ratio (CIR) to 37.21%. Asset quality also remained maintained with a non-performing loan (NPL) ratio of 0.98% and a strong coverage ratio of 246.5%.
With these fundamentals, Bank Mandiri is optimistic about maintaining growth momentum going forward, while strengthening its role as a strategic partner to the government in supporting national economic development.