Jakarta. The Commodity Futures Trading Regulatory Agency, or Bappebti, is under the suspicion of maladministration in its process of building the country’s crypto ecosystem, including the postponed bourse, according to the Indonesian Ombudsman.

Earlier this week, an Ombudsman representative Yeka Hendra Fatika visited the Bappebti following a report on the latter's suspected maladministration in issuing licenses for commodity futures exchange, which will ultimately lead to a permit for the crypto bourse. Suspicions arose when the crypto bourse, of which the formation process already began in 2020 and was initially slated to launch in end-2021, took forever to take shape. 

“There are maladministration allegations because based on the inspection [of the complainant], the procedural requirements have all been met. But a permit is yet to be given, whether it is accepted or rejected,” Yeka said.

According to Yeka, a company has applied to become an exchange. However, the status of the company, which is the complainant in this case, remains unclear. Some companies have also met the administrative requirements from the Bappebti, but there are still other steps to be taken.

Yeka added the Ombudsman understood that Bappebti is the one in authority, especially since the issuance of a crypto bourse license would affect the public. 

The Ombudsman will conduct a further probe to see if the existing procedures can give justice to the people, in this case, the complainant. It aims to have the case concluded within a month. In the near future, the Ombudsman will probe the Bappebti following maladministration suspicions.

“We have probed the Digital Futures Exchange [DFX] and we will demand an explanation from the Bappebti. We have set up the date, [which will likely be] next week,” Yeka said.

Crypto assets have shown major growth in Indonesia. In 2021, the transaction value of crypto assets reached Rp 859.4 trillion ($56.93 billion). The number of crypto investors in the country also exceeded those investing in the stock exchange. As of Dec. 2022, state tax revenue from crypto trading stood at Rp 246.45 billion.

President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo has repeatedly called for a trouble-free licensing process to spur business growth. As crypto investors and assets grow rapidly in the country, the bourse formation becomes something that the Bappebti needs to immediately work on.

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