VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Head of the Syriah finance and MSME ecosystem task force of the Financial Services Authority (OJK), Ahmad Buchori, at a media briefing on Friday (February 4, 2022). (ANTARA/Sanya Dinda/FR) - 

Micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) obtained Rp13.6 trillion in financing from peer-to-peer fintech lenders in 2021, head of the Syriah finance and MSME ecosystem task force of the Financial Services Authority (OJK) has said.

"The fintech industry is growing. The money that it lends (to MSMEs) reached Rp13.6 trillion in 2021," Ahmad Buchori noted during a media briefing on Friday.

There are 103 fintech peer-to-peer lenders holding OJK permits for financing, which comprise 10.9 million lenders and 13.4 million borrowers, he informed.

During the event, he also highlighted that the Micro Wakaf Bank (BWM), established in 2017, has provided up to Rp78.2 billion in financing to MSMEs.

"The figure is expected to increase this year because the government is increasingly encouraging and expanding BWM," he noted.

OJK will continue to push financing for MSMEs so that they can survive the impact of COVID-19, Buchori said.

"The pandemic and PPKM (public activity restrictions) have affected MSMEs, with 84 percent of them experiencing a decline in revenue and 62 percent encountering hurdles concerning employees and operational troubles," he informed.

This is despite the fact that MSMEs, currently numbered at 65 million, make a large contribution to the national economy, he said.

MSMEs constitute 99 percent of the total businesses in Indonesia and employ 120 million workers, or 97 percent of Indonesia's total workforce, he noted.

Around 15.65 percent of national exports and 60.51 percent of Indonesia's total gross domestic product (GDP) is contributed by MSMEs, he added.

Hence, the effort to recover this sector is important to support the growth of the national economy, Buchori said.

OJK is also carrying out numerous polices, including extending a number of incentives until 2023 so that MSMEs can recover from the effects of the pandemic, he added//ANT