Stories around establishing an Indonesian National Crypto Exchange by the end of 2022 created a buzz among Indonesia’s growing circle of crypto-entrepreneurs and investors, especially considering the huge market potential and the country’s adoption of all things digital. But the roll out has experienced delays and there have been a number of hurdles to overcome that has delayed the roll out.
A recent article in CoinTelegraph said that Indonesia’s Ministry of Trade is now reportedly aiming to roll out a national crypto exchange by June this year, six months after its previous target of December 2022.
Trade Minister Zulkifli Hasan shared the new target launch date on February 2 at the opening of Crypto Literacy Month in Jakarta, noting that the government is currently reviewing which companies meet their criteria to become part of the exchange, according to local reports.
There are five active crypto exchanges that are currently registered with the country’s regulators, and according to Zulkifli, the ministry’s crypto exchange could encompass all of them.
While these exchanges are currently facilitating all trades within Indonesia, the ministry’s exchange would act as a clearing house and custodian in the local crypto market.
A clearing house is essentially a mediator between a buyer and seller, ensuring the transaction goes smoothly. At the same time, its role as a custodian would see it manage the movement of assets between the two parties, say CoinTelegraph.
The trade minister urged the public to be patient with the national crypto exchange, saying that if it was rushed, ”things will get messy. The government does not want this to massively take a toll on the public because people do not know much [about crypto trading].”
Crypto assets in the country are currently traded alongside commodity contracts and supervised by the Commodity Futures Trading Regulatory Agency, also known as Bappebti, but the regulatory power will shift to the Financial Services Authority following the creation of a national exchange.
The regulatory shift comes in response to new crypto regulations ratified on December 15, 2022 which recognizes crypto and other digital assets as regulated financial securities.
Bank of Indonesia Governor Perry Warjiyo announced in December that a central bank digital currency that was being planned would be the only legal digital tender in the country.
Source: CoinTelegraph
