Indonesia’s financial intelligence agency has blocked approximately 5,000 bank accounts linked to online gambling, which are believed to have funneled trillions of rupiah abroad. According to a report by Detik on Tuesday (June 18), the funds were traced to 20 different countries.
“There are 20 countries currently detected (where online gambling money flows) worth trillions,” said Mr. Ivan Yustiavandana, head of the Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Center (PPATK).
While the specific countries were not disclosed, the agency’s head of public relations, M. Natsir Kongah, mentioned that some funds had been moved to countries within the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), including Thailand, the Philippines, Cambodia, and Vietnam.
Mr. Natsir detailed the detection process, explaining that the agency understands the mechanisms of money circulation in online gambling. “We know how the perpetrators send money to small dealers, who then transfer it to larger dealers. A significant amount of this money, exceeding five trillion rupiah (US$305 million), has been sent abroad,” he said.
In a discussion titled “Dying of Gambling” on June 15, Mr. Natsir revealed that 3.2 million Indonesians, ranging from students to housewives, are involved in online gambling. Over 80% of these gamblers engage with small transaction values of around 100,000 rupiahs. He noted that many participants are minors, including elementary and junior high school students, beggars, the unemployed, and informal sector workers.
Mr. Natsir warned that online gambling is closely linked to other legal violations, such as illegal online loans and fraud, and there are suggestions of connections to money laundering. Despite efforts by Indonesia’s communications and informatics ministry to block over two million online gambling sites, new ones continue to emerge.
To address this, President Joko Widodo officially authorized a task force on June 14 to combat online gambling. Led by the Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal, and Security Affairs, Hadi Tjahjanto, the task force comprises officials from various ministries and agencies. Its mandate is to develop strategies to optimize the prevention and enforcement of online gambling laws.
The task force was created due to the significant financial losses, social disruption, and psychological impacts caused by online gambling, which the Indonesian government considers a severe legal violation.
Earlier this month, an Indonesian policewoman was charged with killing her husband, a fellow officer, by allegedly burning him to death due to his gambling addiction. This incident has brought further attention to the issue of online gambling in Indonesia.
