Jakarta (ANTARA) - Bank Indonesia (BI) will waive the fee for Quick Response Code Indonesian Standard (QRIS) for transactions under Rp100 thousand (US$6.66).

BI Governor Perry Warjiyo said here on Tuesday that the waiver policy aims to sharpen the digitalization of payment systems to expand digital economic and financial inclusion.

"Transactions up to Rp100 thousand are subject to zero percent of the QRIS' Merchant Discount Rate (MDR)," Warjiyo announced at a press conference on the results of the monthly meeting of its board of governors (RDG).

BI charges an MDR of 0.3 percent for transactions above Rp100 thousand.

The new policy will come into effect from September 1, 2023, and no later than November 30, depending on industry readiness, the BI governor informed.

According to BI, QRIS transactions have continued to climb and recorded a growth of 104.64 percent year-on-year (yoy) in the second quarter of 2023. The transactions reached Rp49.65 trillion (US$3.3 billion) during the period.

The number of QRIS users has reached 37 million and the number of merchants using QRIS for payments has been recorded at 26.7 million, most of whom are micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs).

The central bank has continued to accelerate payment system digitalization for financial inclusion by bolstering QRIS utilization through the expansion of QRIS Tuntas, which allows cash withdrawals and deposits.

QRIS is also being promoted overseas, for instance, by linking it with payment systems in ASEAN countries.

Furthermore, BI is encouraging the use of QRIS through the National QRIS Week and the Indonesian Sovereign Rupiah Festival (FERBI) within the framework of the Indonesian Independence commemoration.

The central bank said that the performance of digital economic and financial transactions in Indonesia has continued to strengthen.

The value of electronic money transactions in the second quarter of 2023 increased 14.82 percent yoy to Rp111.35 trillion (US$7.4 billion).

Meanwhile, the value of digital banking transactions grew 11.6 percent yoy to Rp13,827 trillion (US$920 million).

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Translator: Imamatul S, Kenzu
Editor: Azis Kurmala
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