Indonesia to form state-owned insurance, banking holding firms

Indonesia’s State-Owned Enterprises (SOE) Ministry is planning to create state-owned insurance and banking holding companies in the coming months, as part of its initiative to improve the efficiency of government businesses in the two sectors.

“I hope the state-owned insurance holding company is established next month and will be followed by the establishment of a state-owned banking holding company in April,” SOE Minister Rini Soemarno was quoted as saying by the Jakarta Post.

Rini also added that the establishment of the holding companies aims to boost foreign investors’ confidence in the Indonesian market.

PT Jasa Raharja was tasked with leading the formation of the insurance holding company, with three other state-owned insurers – PT Asuransi Kredit Indonesia (Askrindo), PT Jaminan Kredit Indonesia (Jamkrindo) and PT Asuransi Jasa Indonesia (Jasindo) – as members.

Jasa Raharja corporate secretary Harwan Muldidarmawan confirmed that the firm would indeed take the lead role in establishing the holding company, the report said. However, he did not comment on specifics, saying that it was up to the SOE Ministry to divulge more information about the plan.