Street Money Changers Guarded by Lookouts for Safety
Jakarta — Many street-based money changers, often referred to as inang-inang, have disclosed that their supply of new banknotes for exchange originates from a ‘boss’. This boss provides large volumes of new currency capital to be circulated by field workers.
Based on monitoring by CNBC Indonesia in the Kota Tua and Asemka areas of West Jakarta, money changers are frequently accompanied by several individuals who serve as the boss’s representatives. These associates do not always remain directly beside the money changer; instead, the boss or their representatives return to monitor operations every few minutes or hours.
Irma, one of the street-based money changers, explained that she does not provide capital herself, but rather borrows a sum of money from her ‘boss’ to conduct exchanges. Any surplus from the exchanges is returned, and the profits are divided evenly.
“The money comes from my boss — I don’t know who they are, but we use a borrowing system from the boss. When we return home, we give back what we borrowed. Whatever remainder we have, we take home,” Irma told CNBC Indonesia on Thursday, 12 March 2026.
Beyond cash exchanges, if customers lack physical money, the boss provides bank transfer facilities to the boss’s account. Once the customer transfers the amount to be exchanged along with the service fee, the money changer provides new banknotes to the customer.
“If they don’t have cash, we can arrange a transfer to our boss’s bank account,” Irma added.
Similarly, Yeni serves merely as an intermediary for street-based money exchange services. The fee structure and exchange scheme are predetermined by her boss.
“I’m just a trader. My boss monitors my activities, so the exchange money is handed over to the boss first before being divided up,” said Yeni. However, she has no knowledge of her boss’s details, as she is only instructed to conduct currency exchanges with members of the public.
“I don’t know who my boss is — I’m just an intermediary,” she noted.
Protected by Lookouts
Despite openly displaying new banknotes to every passer-by on the street, these money-changing service providers appear far from fearful of losing money or being robbed. This confidence stems from their connection with other service providers operating in the area.
Moreover, according to their accounts, there are ‘lookouts’ who regularly circulate and monitor the money changers.
“We have our friends here, lookouts. Yes, there are — it’s not just us. We have our friends here,” explained Irma.
According to her, these ‘lookouts’ are representatives sent by the ‘boss’ who provides the new banknotes. The money being hawked by these service providers is held on consignment from the boss, who monitors from a distance.
“So it’s not just us here. There are people nearby watching. If anyone attempts to snatch the money, they’re chased immediately. This isn’t our money — it belongs to someone else,” she explained.