Now, you need to do transaction more often on your Indonesian Bank AC

[pantaiema]

Indonesia to Freeze Bank Accounts After 3 Months of Inactivity - Expat Indonesia

The Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Center (PPATK) announced it will begin freezing dormant bank accounts—those inactive for at least three months—in an effort to safeguard the country’s financial system from misuse, including money laundering schemes. The policy was revealed through...

expatindonesia.id

They will freeze your bank account if it remains inactive for three months or more. According to them, this policy is intended to protect the country’s financial system from misuse, such as money laundering.

In other countries, especially those with well-developed financial systems. This is not the typical approach to detecting money laundering or terrorism financing. Inactivity of just three months is not usually a trigger.

In such countries, changes like this would generally require proper public communication and an update to the Terms and Conditions (T&C), allowing customers time to understand and make informed decisions and actions. The T&C represents a contract between the customer and the financial institution, and cannot be altered arbitrarily.

This kind of action reflects another bad sign for Indonesia’s financial reputation, which is already damaged by the ease with which illicit funds circulate within the banking system.

 

[jstar]

Yes it’s ridiculous. Luckily it seems to be 3-12 months at the discretion of the bank.

My euro account at Bank Mega which I wanted to use after some time, was blocked. Now that’s recent but before the announcement so I don’t know if certain banks already apply this ‘rule’.

 

[john madden]

Small deposits within the 3 months would prevent?

 

[pantaiema]

Yes it’s ridiculous. Luckily it seems to be 3-12 months at the discretion of the bank.

My euro account at Bank Mega which I wanted to use after some time, was blocked. Now that’s recent but before the announcement so I don’t know if certain banks already apply this ‘rule’.

They’ve already done this, I have read several cases about it. The documentaries above, particularly the last one, also covered it. They acted without any prior notice; people simply discovered their accounts were locked. No updated T&C were shared beforehand. When a bank fails to uphold its own T&Cs, it reflects very bad practices.

With time deposit/saving such as 1-2 yr term; unlike, current account, in many cases you can not add more money to keep it active.

 

[jstar]

Small deposits within the 3 months would prevent?

Not sure. Someone was complaining his account was blocked even when he used it; but for deposits only. It could be a coincidence of course.

Before the banks could block an account of course but in most cases it was very easy to reactivate online. But now you need to start filling in forms explaining the origin of the funds and it can take up to 20 days (cf. my Bank Mega contact).

Yesterday our wise president endorsed the decision. But it seems today he’s making quite some phone calls after a storm of protest.

 

[pantaiema]

What happen with Golden Visa then where you need to deposit US50k and to be locked for five years into Indonesian State own Bank. There is very few official statistics have been published. If my memory serves well, it was less than ten people.

This incident is yet another example showing that they can unilaterally block your account without any prior notice. It will do another damage to the reputation of Indonesian Bank which is already bad, as it may lead people to think twice before investing or depositing large amounts of money in Indonesian banks

 

[Balifrog]

What happen with Golden Visa then where you need to deposit US50k and to be locked for five years into Indonesian State own Bank. There is very few official statistics have been published. If my memory serves well, it was less than ten people.

This incident is yet another example showing that they can unilaterally block your account without any prior notice. It will do another damage to the reputation of Indonesian Bank which is already bad, as it may lead people to think twice before investing or depositing large amounts of money in Indonesian banks

Any country can do it, and they do all it.
Russian accounts frozen overnight, Iranian, Syrian, Afghans... anybody "suspect" for whatever reason etc...
We even had some far right politicians in France having their account cancelled (with a 30 day warning) for belonging to the wrong party.

Worse :
"On 25 March 2013, a €10 billion international bailout by the Eurogroup, European Commission (EC), European Central Bank (ECB), and International Monetary Fund (IMF) was announced, in return for Cyprus agreeing to close the country's second-largest bank, the Cyprus Popular Bank (also known as Laiki Bank), imposing a one-time bank deposit levy on all uninsured deposits there, and seizing possibly around 48% of uninsured deposits in the Bank of Cyprus (the island's largest commercial bank)."

Bank can block accounts or limit withdrawals in case of a banking crisis or bank run (Greece, Lebanon...)

I had my saving account at HSBC Indo blocked a few years ago because I didn't do any transaction. Unblocked with a simple visit to the branch.

 

[pantaiema]

Any country can do it, and they do all it.
Russian accounts frozen overnight, Iranian, Syrian, Afghans... anybody "suspect" for whatever reason etc...
We even had some far right politicians in France having their account cancelled (with a 30 day warning) for belonging to the wrong party.

Worse :
"On 25 March 2013, a €10 billion international bailout by the Eurogroup, European Commission (EC), European Central Bank (ECB), and International Monetary Fund (IMF) was announced, in return for Cyprus agreeing to close the country's second-largest bank, the Cyprus Popular Bank (also known as Laiki Bank), imposing a one-time bank deposit levy on all uninsured deposits there, and seizing possibly around 48% of uninsured deposits in the Bank of Cyprus (the island's largest commercial bank)."

Bank can block accounts or limit withdrawals in case of a banking crisis or bank run (Greece, Lebanon...)

I had my saving account at HSBC Indo blocked a few years ago because I didn't do any transaction. Unblocked with a simple visit to the branch.

Certainly True. But there is massive difference if you inform people in advance and socialize it and state it in the T&C. That is not the case based on report from the media above. People just found their account get locked.

A three-month dormancy period to detect money laundering (AML) is highly unusual and illogical. Based on the explanation given in Video 2, the PPATK representative seems more suited to politics, either he genuinely doesn’t understand how things work, or he's deliberately ignoring the reality. If someone is using an account as a savings account, they naturally won’t access it frequently. The accounts paying high interest rates often have deposit limits, so people need to open multiple accounts for taking this benefit. So, if someone has dozens of savings accounts, how many of them would realistically be accessed every three months? Is this really a valid basis for AML concerns, given that the money was moved from one Indonesian bank to another bank, so fully traceable, not from the thin air?
Fromm other sources, some people said they might do this intentionally as they have liquidity problem so locking people money for a while as an excuse will help. But this is yet to be proven.

From the above report people are using saving account for their children education and suddenly get blocked.

Also it has got to be stated in the T&C. The bank is controlled by the regulators. But the bank has a contract with their customers via T&C. If you breach this unilaterally, it is a breach of trust.

 

[Balifrog]

If you breach this unilaterally, it is a breach of trust.

Because you trust banks ?
40 years ago maybe, not nowadays.

In the 90's my "contact" at my S.G. branch in my village in France, with who I worked a lot on fix term placements (1 to 3 months), getting close to retirement told me "There was a time we were really financial advisers with the customer's interest as priority.
Now we have become salesman for various financial products that sometimes even we, don't understand.
And if you don't reach the target set by your management, you will be moved to a basic desk job"

 

[Shadrach]

Certainly True. But there is massive difference if you inform people in advance and socialize it and state it in the T&C. That is not the case based on report from the media above. People just found their account get locked.

Also three months dormancy to detect AML is very unusual. From the above report people are using saving account for their children education and suddenly get blocked.

Also it has got to be stated in the T&C. The bank is controlled by the regulators. But the bank has a contract with their customers via T&C. If you breach this unilaterally, it is a breach of trust.

I have always been wary of keeping all my eggs in one basket. For quite a few years now, Credit, and debit cards have been promoted as the easy way to go with purchases. Now it's using QR codes to make purchases over the internet. I'm not sure, but I heard some countries are trying to eliminate cash all together. If this is true, there goes the ability of going to a morning market, or paying for something out of your pocket. What if your say, traveling in the mountains and you have car trouble, and need to pay a mechanic on the side of the road where there's not any Wifi. How are you going to Pay?
Also if we are forced to only use Bank cards, then what do we do, if the electricity goes out, when you need to make a transaction? This story of banks closing accounts without notifying the account holder, is not right!
The Bank has already charged their monthly fee, so the account holder has already fulfilled their obligation to the Bank.
To me it's the same as the Telephone provider forcing the account holder to buy Pulsa every month. Once I lost my account because I was unaware of this, and didn't buy Pulsa because I still had 80,000, out of the 100,000RP. I had bought the month before. I wasn't notified, and thus lost my account and number. So I had to start over and buy a new Sim card, and number. Personally I think it's not right I just lost my account and money, and had to start over again. Also does this happen at the banks too? Do they keep the money in the account, if they block it?

 

[Balifrog]

I have always been wary of keeping all my eggs in one basket. For quite a few years now, Credit, and debit cards have been promoted as the easy way to go with purchases. Now it's using QR codes to make purchases over the internet. I'm not sure, but I heard some countries are trying to eliminate cash all together. If this is true, there goes the ability of going to a morning market, or paying for something out of your pocket. What if your say, traveling in the mountains and you have car trouble, and need to pay a mechanic on the side of the road where there's not any Wifi. How are you going to Pay?
Also if we are forced to only use Bank cards, then what do we do, if the electricity goes out, when you need to make a transaction? This story of banks closing accounts without notifying the account holder, is not right!
The Bank has already charged their monthly fee, so the account holder has already fulfilled their obligation to the Bank.
To me it's the same as the Telephone provider forcing the account holder to buy Pulsa every month. Once I lost my account because I was unaware of this, and didn't buy Pulsa because I still had 80,000, out of the 100,000RP. I had bought the month before. I wasn't notified, and thus lost my account and number. So I had to start over and buy a new Sim card, and number. Personally I think it's not right I just lost my account and money, and had to start over again. Also does this happen at the banks too? Do they keep the money in the account, if they block it?

So, what has this dribble to do with the subject ?

 

[pantaiema]

Sudden freezes hurt user trust more than they help

There was a case with TSB bank in the UK. People can not access their accounts over botched IT migration

https://www.reuters.com/world/uk/british-bank-tsb-fined-4865-million-pounds-over-it-platform-migration-failures-2022-12-20/

They got fined £48.7m by the regulator. Also they were ordered to compensate their customers who were effected.

If the Indonesian banks could simply breach their own T&C unilaterally, and nothing happen to them, this is a more serious case. T&C is a contract between the bank and the customer.

 

[Shadrach]

So, what has this dribble to do with the subject ?

This dribble as you rudely call it, relates to how we have no power when it comes to having a Bank account. Even though we pay and do our part, the Bank can change the rules anytime, and seize our assets! That's what I was referring to. It is a serious matter, when we lose our money, and have no recourse!

 

[pantaiema]

Ivan Yustiavandana, the head of PPTAK (Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Center), recently appeared at a press conference defending the decision to freeze bank accounts (post #1). Recent news, they have order to reopen roughly the same number of accounts they previously locked.

PPATK Buka Lagi Lebih dari 28 Juta Rekening Nganggur yang Diblokir

PPATK mengatakan telah membuka puluhan juta rekening tidak aktif yang sebelumnya diblokir. Ada 28 juta lebih rekening nganggur yang kini sudah aktif kembali.

news.detik.com

As is typical in Indonesia, action only came after a barrage of public complaints. For the person himself, there’s no sign of shame or any talk of his voluntary resignation.

For the Indonesian bank itself breaching a T&C unilaterally is a very serious violation of their customer right. In other countries with good regulator and watchdog, the case like this will be met with a huge fine and compensation order. This might be one of reason why not many sensible people want to deposit US50k and to be locked for five years in Indonesian bank for golden visa.

 

[Shadrach]

Ivan Yustiavandana, the head of PPTAK (Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Center), recently appeared at a press conference defending the decision to freeze bank accounts (post #1). Recent news, they have order to reopen roughly the same number of accounts they previously locked.

PPATK Buka Lagi Lebih dari 28 Juta Rekening Nganggur yang Diblokir

PPATK mengatakan telah membuka puluhan juta rekening tidak aktif yang sebelumnya diblokir. Ada 28 juta lebih rekening nganggur yang kini sudah aktif kembali.

news.detik.com

As is typical in Indonesia, action only came after a barrage of public complaints. There’s no sign of shame or any talk of his voluntary resignation.

For the Indonesian bank itself breaching a T&C unilaterally is a very serious violation of their customer right. In other countries with good regulator and watchdog, the case like this will be met with a huge fine and compensation order. This might be one of reason why not many sensible people want to deposit US50k and to be locked for five years in Indonesian bank for golden visa.

I agree about being afraid of depositing large amounts of your hard earned money into a Non secure Bank! That's why I deposit the little money I have into one of the more well known banks. Unfortunately nowadays, We are being forced into having our funds in Banks for almost all our transactions. Every month, within the first few days, I use my account to pay BPJS, to keep my account active. I wonder is this enough, or should I make more deposits also? Are the banks keeping the funds from the accounts they freeze?

 

[pantaiema]

Every month, within the first few days, I use my account to pay BPJS, to keep my account active. I wonder is this enough, or should I make more deposits also? Are the banks keeping the funds from the accounts they freeze?

I fully believe that will be enough. But to be 100% sure you need to confirm it with your bank.

 

[El_Goretto]

As is typical in Indonesia, action only came after a barrage of public complaints. For the person himself, there’s no sign of shame or any talk of his voluntary resignation.

I think it's mostly due to this:

What a bunch of wankers.

 

[El_Goretto]

So, what has this dribble to do with the subject ?

No back-seat modding, thanks.

Post is on topic (this is not an invitation to debate with me).

 

[pantaiema]

I think it's mostly due to this:

View attachment 5102

View attachment 5103
View attachment 5104


What a bunch of wankers.

The relationship between a bank and its customers is unique because when individuals deposit money into a bank, the money belong to customers not the bank. If a bank were to act unilaterally in ways not stated in its terms and conditions, it would constitute a serious violation of customer rights.

It’s unsurprising that Indonesian bank share prices fell after the incident. What’s more, these banks faced neither fines nor orders to compensate affected customers. This further highlights the ineffectiveness of Indonesia’s financial regulators, who may be staffed with incompetent individuals appointed by those in power for their own personal interests.

 

[pantaiema]

I mention it previously that what they are doing is illegal. This has been confirmed by the Law expert and practitioner, Hotman Paris (4:35 Mark)


This has also been confirmed by former Minister of Law and Human Rights. "Mahfud called the action a serious violation of legal authority."

The core issue is that the bank violated its own terms and conditions. Despite admitting the mistake, evidenced by many blocked accounts being reopened days later; those responsible for issuing the order have not been dismissed, regulators have taken no action, and the affected individuals have received no compensation.