Indonesia's chairmanship of ASEAN-BAC in 2023 aims to realize digital transformation and financial inclusion in the Southeast Asian region, especially… for MSMEs because they are the backbone of the regional economy.
Jakarta (ANTARA) - The implementation of the ASEAN Quick Response (QR) Code can support the improvement of micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in the region, the ASEAN Business Advisory Council (ASEAN-BAC) has said.

"Indonesia's chairmanship of ASEAN-BAC in 2023 aims to realize digital transformation and financial inclusion in the Southeast Asian region, especially… for MSMEs because they are the backbone of the regional economy," chairperson of the 2023 ASEAN-BAC Arsjad Rasjid said in a statement released on Monday.

The ASEAN QR Code initiative aims to enable cross-border payments using local currency, making it easier for small business players to seize more market opportunities across the region.

According to the statement, the QR Code is also expected to strengthen economic cooperation between ASEAN member countries and increase the volume of cross-border trade.

Head for ASEAN QR Code Legacy at the 2023 ASEAN-BAC Pandu Sjahrir noted that currently, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Thailand have a connected payment system in place. In addition, Malaysia and Thailand also have an integrated payment system cooperation with Singapore.

In November 2022, the central banks of Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand had inked a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for regional payment connectivity cooperation.

Apart from the ASEAN QR Code, ASEAN-BAC has also prepared two other digital initiatives, namely Wiki Entrepreneur and Marketplace Lending Platform, to strengthen the financial and market inclusion of MSMEs.

Wiki Entrepreneur will serve as a hub for large companies to market their products and for MSMEs to access the resources they need.

Meanwhile, the Marketplace Lending Platform will seek to increase alternative funding sources for MSMEs by allowing small enterprises to find the right capital lenders, thereby also helping develop the digital economy and supporting the growth of businesses in the region.

Currently, there are 70 million MSMEs, 622 million consumers, and more than 100 million Internet users in the Southeast Asian region who have a huge potential to advance the digital economy in the region, according to the statement.

Indonesia is serving as the chair of ASEAN from January 1 to December 31, 2023.

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Translator: Martha Simanjuntak, Uyu Liman
Editor: Azis Kurmala
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