Indonesia tightens controls to curb online gambling transactions

Financial authorities will block payment systems.

Indonesia.- Budi Arie Setiadi, minister of communications and information technology, has said he is working with the Financial Services Authority (OJK), Bank Indonesia (BI), and the Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Center (PPATK) to stop the use of payment and banking systems for online gambling. Arie Setiadi urged banks to ensure account users match owners to prevent the buying and selling of accounts.

Earlier this month, he announced plans to restrict access to free virtual private networks (VPNs) to prevent access to online gambling. He said he had discussed the decision with Wayan Tony Supriyanto, director general of postal and informatics operations, and Hokky Situngkir, director general of informatics applications.

See also: Indonesian Ministry of Transportation warns officials against gambling

Indonesian Ministry of Tourism rules out land-based casino in Bali

Sandiaga Salahuddin Uno, the Indonesian Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy has poured cold water on a proposal for a casino in Bali. Speaking at a weekly press conference in Jakarta held on Monday (August 5), he said casino gambling remained illegal.

The head of the Indonesian Young Entrepreneurs Association (Hipmi) Bali had proposed the idea, arguing that a move on online gambling could lead to a shift to offline gambling. Bali’s Tourism Office has also rejected the idea. It said its focus remains on cultural tourism aligned with the nation’s values.