How do you guys invest?

[Balifrog]

For those unfamiliar with stock valuation, investing in index funds may be a better option.

Index funds or ETF's

 

[pantaiema]

IHSG watch out. They even halted the trading for a while
https://www.cnbcindonesia.com/marke...sebab-ihsg-anjlok-6-ada-apa-dengan-ekonomi-ri IHSG Drops 6%, What's Wrong With the Indonesian Economy?CNBC Indonesia TV, CNBC Indonesia March 18, 2025

It is very difficult to know what happen or to convince investors if all the parties in trias politica could collude.

 

[pantaiema]

Mahfud Md: This Is The Process Of Company Shares Theft Occurs

Stock Theft, Mahfud MD & Coordinating Minister Yusril Speak Out. Dragging Political Elites?

Keep in mind that this casting involved both the former and the current minister. Based on this casting this is not an isolated case but there are reasonable number of shares theft cases.

From this casting, it appears they manually and internally altered the ownership of shares, possibly using a method similar to duplicating land or property certificates. If you take the case to the Supreme Court, there’s a high chance of losing since the scheme has already been carefully orchestrated.

To restore investor confidence, the government must ensure that such cases are thoroughly investigated, all parties involved are held accountable, and measures are put in place to prevent such incidents from happening again.

 

[serious_fun]

If Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati actually resigns, then what will happen besides another member of the Prabowo/Jokowi family taking a ministerial position?

In January 2025 the IMF was projecting 5.0 % growth in Indonesia for the next 12 months (report found here ). I wonder if those projections seem a bit too optimistic ?

 

[fastpitch17]

If Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati actually resigns, then what will happen besides another member of the Prabowo/Jokowi family taking a ministerial position?

In January 2025 the IMF was projecting 5.0 % growth in Indonesia for the next 12 months (report found here ). I wonder if those projections seem a bit too optimistic ?

Prabowo's nephew is her deputy, put their by the president. That is where it would go and he has little financial experience.

 

[centurion]

Prabowo's nephew is her deputy, put their by the president. That is where it would go and he has little financial experience.

Actually he was in NatWest in HK.

 

[jstar]

Since all eyes were on Venice:

 

[jstar]

It will be interesting to see what to 200% tariff on the pharmaceuticals will do. Unless TACO is changing his mind or was bluffing again; the investors seem to think so since there’s no real panic.

All time high BTC, not bad but I lose a lot because of the very weak USD.

And Lotus Bakeries is going down a lot while last November the sky was the limit, they couldn’t follow the demand for the Biscoff.

 

[pantaiema]

I know that many popular and reputable investing, trading, and management platforms are blocked for access from Indonesia. However, I understand that they might still be reachable through VPNs.
Could anyone share experience accessing platforms like Fidelity, Interactive Brokers, Charles Schwab, or Vanguard via a VPN?

I'm also curious about the challengers, low or no fee platforms such as Invest Engine, Trading 212, and eToro, etc. In particular, Invest Engine (IE) seems to be one of the cheapest options in Europe for trading ETFs in self-invested personal pension (SIPP) accounts at the moment, if not the absolute cheapest. They don’t charge a platform fee, no fee to maintain the account, and there’s no fee to buy or sell ETFs in SIPP accounts. So, even If you trade ETFs hundreds of times a year within SIIP Account, there’s no cost involved. They are well regulated and I think I understand their business models, how they make money, so these challenger platforms could sustain their operation without charging fees to maintain their operation. But if you are residing in Indonesia and/or frequent visitor of Indonesia these benefit is useless if you can not access your account from Indonesia.

Could anyone share experience accessing these platforms from Indonesia using a VPN?

Also it will be very helpful if you could also mention what VPN you are using.

TIA

 

[lifelongexpat]

I access Interactive Brokers using a VPN and have never had any issues.

 

[Wally]

I use Barclays Smart Investor and used to use Saxobank Singapore and could access both without a VPN. One problem I have found as an expat is that many platforms require an address in the country the platform is based in.

 

[Helpful Herbert]

I use Barclays Smart Investor and used to use Saxobank Singapore and could access both without a VPN. One problem I have found as an expat is that many platforms require an address in the country the platform is based in.

Yes, but if you select 'online documentation only' then they will never actually send anything to that address. It's not like banks where they have to have somewhere to send the card to.

 

[jstar]

One problem I have found as an expat is that many platforms require an address in the country the platform is based in.

Yep, and some even request a utility bill or so as proof.

 

[Helpful Herbert]

Yep, and some even request a utility bill or so as proof.

Yes you do need to be adept at using photoshop

 

[pantaiema]

I use Barclays Smart Investor and used to use Saxobank Singapore and could access both without a VPN. One problem I have found as an expat is that many platforms require an address in the country the platform is based in.

If you could access it without VPN, it suggests that site has not been blocked.

 

[Jaime C]

I have existing US investment accounts. No VPN needed for Fidelity, or E-Trade. I have a dormant Schwab account, but have never tried to access it here.

 

[pantaiema]

BCA (Bank Central Asia) is once again in the spotlight due to the liquidity assistance (BLBI) it received during the 1997-1998 financial crisis. The trillion-rupiah question remains: how could a bank once valued at around Rp200T be acquired by conglomerates for only about Rp5T just a few years later? Considering BCA is a publicly listed company, imagine being one of its early investors, watching its value plummet from Rp200T to Rp5T.

Also during the financial crisis BCA received iquidity assistance (BLBI) from the Indionesian government in cash injection of around Rp32T. In addtion The government then injected an additional Rp 60T in recapitalization bonds to recapitalize the bank in the effort to make it healthy again. Later the Conglomerate Jarum Group (Cigarette Manufacturer) purchased the majpority of share for Rp5T.
This occasion turn this congloimerate to become the richest men in Indonesia.

While many Indonesian conglomerates have achieved great success domestically, they struggle to compete on a global scale. This is largely because the business practices they rely on in Indonesia are not replicable in most other countries. It has been repeatedly shown that certain Supreme Court judges and members of parliament can be influenced by financial incentives. There is evidence of collusion involving other parties such as financial authorities and the stock exchange itself.

 

[pantaiema]

Is anyone here investing in individual stocks in Indonesia? I’d like to hear about your personal experiences, the pros and cons. One advantage I can see is that they’re priced in IDR, so you don’t lose money from currency exchange when buying or selling. On the downside, one major concern is the regulator, who doesn’t always seem to be doing their job properly.

IHSG (Indeks Harga Saham Gabungan) IDX / JCI looks like a good alternative for those wanting to invest in IDR, since it’s harder to manipulate with several hundred stocks in the index. Has anyone here invested in IHSG in Indonesia and could share their experience?

Thanks

 

[centurion]

Is anyone here investing in individual stocks in Indonesia? I’d like to hear about your personal experiences, the pros and cons. One advantage I can see is that they’re priced in IDR, so you don’t lose money from currency exchange when buying or selling. On the downside, one major concern is the regulator, who doesn’t always seem to be doing their job properly.

IHSG (Indeks Harga Saham Gabungan) IDX / JCI looks like a good alternative for those wanting to invest in IDR, since it’s harder to manipulate with several hundred stocks in the index. Has anyone here invested in IHSG in Indonesia and could share their experience?

Thanks

Basically you will not earn nothing, if you calculate in real money (USD or IDR).

 

[Balifrog]

Is anyone here investing in individual stocks in Indonesia? I’d like to hear about your personal experiences, the pros and cons. One advantage I can see is that they’re priced in IDR, so you don’t lose money from currency exchange when buying or selling. On the downside, one major concern is the regulator, who doesn’t always seem to be doing their job properly.

IHSG (Indeks Harga Saham Gabungan) IDX / JCI looks like a good alternative for those wanting to invest in IDR, since it’s harder to manipulate with several hundred stocks in the index. Has anyone here invested in IHSG in Indonesia and could share their experience?

Thanks

In my opinion the main problem is the lack of information in English.
Personally I "play" on the NYSE.