Jakarta. Ashfiyatul Mardiyatillah once struggled to keep track of her business finances as she built a home-based food business in Demak, Central Java. Today, her black squid stew reaches customers across Indonesia, with digital payments through AstraPay helping her manage transactions and business capital.

Known as Fia, the entrepreneur prepares her products in a 2-by-3-meter kitchen in Batursari, Demak regency. Her vacuum-sealed packages, sold under the “Rasa yg Berkah” brand, are shipped to customers in cities including Jakarta, Denpasar and Samarinda.

The expansion has brought new logistical challenges. Because her products contain no artificial preservatives, Fia must ensure they remain properly frozen during long-distance deliveries.

But in the early days of her business, managing money was an even bigger challenge.

“Back then, whenever I received an order from outside Java, I would get worried. Express shipping was expensive, and I was afraid of being deceived by fake transfer receipts. I also often forgot to record cash expenses. Eventually, my business capital for buying squid got mixed up with household spending,” Fia said.

Digital Payments Help Track Business Finances
Fia initially relied on cash transactions and recorded expenses in a notebook after finishing her kitchen work. The practice often left her struggling to track cash flow, while money in her wallet could easily be mistaken for profit, even when it was needed to replenish business capital.

She began modernizing her financial management in early 2026 by adopting the Quick Response Code Indonesian Standard (QRIS) feature on the AstraPay application.

Fia uses QRIS to pay for raw materials, with the application's interface allowing her to track transactions and separate business funds from personal expenses.

For purchases from vendors who still accept cash, she continues to record expenses separately before reconciling them with her digital transaction history.

The shift has also extended to her suppliers.

“Yes, she used to always pay in cash. Now she rarely does that and uses QRIS or transfers more often. I’ve finally adapted too,” said Suharti, one of Fia’s regular spice vendors at the market.

Payment Verification Supports Business Expansion
Digital payments have also changed how Fia handles customer orders, particularly those from new buyers.

Previously, she relied on screenshots of transfer receipts, leaving her concerned about the possibility of payment fraud. She now verifies incoming payments through AstraPay's real-time notifications and transaction history before beginning production.

The system allows her to check whether funds have actually arrived rather than relying solely on screenshots sent by customers.

For deliveries outside Java, Fia uses Paxel's cold-chain logistics services. AstraPay's integration with the logistics application allows her to pay shipping fees directly from her phone by confirming her PIN, eliminating the need to prepare cash for couriers.

While digital payments do not extend the shelf life of her products, they help her track incoming funds and operational expenses more accurately.

Over the past three months, Fia's business has sold around 130 packages of black squid stew to 80 customers across Indonesia. Of those customers, 50 have placed repeat orders.

Alongside improvements in taste and packaging, she uses AstraPay's transaction history to monitor her business finances and plan capital turnover.

Financial Inclusion Needs to Be Matched by Literacy
Fia's experience illustrates the distinction between access to financial services and the ability to use them effectively for business decisions.

The 2025 National Survey on Financial Literacy and Inclusion (SNLIK), conducted by the Financial Services Authority (OJK) and Statistics Indonesia (BPS), found that Indonesia's financial inclusion index reached 80.51%, while its financial literacy index stood at 66.46%.

Among women, the financial inclusion index was 80.28%, compared with a financial literacy index of 65.58%.

The figures highlight a gap between access to financial services and people's understanding of how to manage them. For microbusiness owners, adopting a digital payment application alone may not be enough if business finances remain mixed with household spending.

Bank Indonesia recorded 63 million QRIS users and more than 45 million merchants as of April 2026, the majority of whom were micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs).

The central bank's figures underscore the importance of digital financial literacy, including keeping PINs confidential and independently verifying transaction records.

As Fia's business expands, its impact is also being felt in her neighborhood. She now employs several local women on a part-time basis to clean squid and package products.

“Now I feel much more at ease. Because everything is properly recorded in AstraPay and transactions can be checked immediately, I have the confidence to accept orders from outside the island. I feel proud that food from my small kitchen in Demak can be enjoyed as far away as Bali and Kalimantan,” Fia said.

For Fia, the benefits of digital financial services are reflected in everyday business decisions, from keeping household expenses separate from working capital to verifying payments before processing orders and planning raw material purchases.

While adopting a digital payment platform does not transform a small business overnight, AstraPay has helped Fia establish more disciplined financial practices as she reaches customers beyond her hometown.

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