Over the past few weeks, President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo’s administration has been scrambling to discourage people from engaging in online gambling, which is thought to have already affected 4 million Indonesians. – Antara/The Jakarta Post
JAKARTA: The Indonesian government has issued a warning to digital payment service providers, stating that they will face sanctions if found facilitating online gambling transactions, reported Antara news agency.
In a statement released on Saturday (Aug 10), Minister of Communication and Information Technology Budi Arie Setiadi said that his ministry has sent warning letters to 21 providers operating 42 digital payment applications.
The letters were sent after the ministry found indications that the 42 applications were being used as payment tools for gambling activities.
In the letter, the ministry asked the service providers to conduct an internal audit of their payment services and report the results within seven working days.
"If their audit reports are not submitted within seven days, they will be subject to administrative sanctions," Setiadi emphasised.
Indonesia is continuing to take preventive measures for online gambling eradication in society. On June 14, 2024, President Joko Widodo signed a decree establishing the online gambling eradication task force.
The Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (PPATK) reported in June that it has blocked thousands of bank accounts linked to online gambling activities with a total fund of Rp600 trillion (US$36.39 billion). – Bernama
