Crypto as Commodity Regulations in Indonesia: What Changed in 2025

Before 2025, buying and selling Bitcoin in Indonesia was treated like trading soybeans or crude oil. You could do it legally, but it had no real connection to the financial system. That changed on January 10, 2025, when Indonesia stopped treating cryptocurrency as a commodity and moved it squarely into the financial sector. The shift wasn’t just a paperwork update-it rewrote the rules for everyone: traders, exchanges, investors, and even tax collectors.

The Old Rules: Crypto as a Commodity

For years, the Commodity Futures Trading Regulatory Agency (BAPPEBTI) ran the show. They didn’t care if you were trading Bitcoin, Dogecoin, or some obscure token from a Discord group. As long as it was on their approved list-over 850 assets by early 2025-you could trade it. The only real guardrails were anti-money laundering (AML) checks and basic Know-Your-Customer (KYC) rules. Exchanges didn’t need a financial license. They just had to register with BAPPEBTI and report suspicious activity.

But there was a big catch: crypto was never legal as payment. You couldn’t use Bitcoin to buy coffee, pay rent, or order food online. The government made that clear from the start. So while trading was allowed, crypto had no real role in daily economic life. It was a speculative asset, not a tool.

The Big Shift: OJK Takes Over

The turning point came with Law No. 4 of 2023, passed in January 2023 but only fully activated on January 10, 2025. This law transferred control of cryptocurrency from BAPPEBTI to the Financial Services Authority (OJK)-the same body that oversees banks, insurance, and stock markets.

This wasn’t just a department swap. It meant crypto was now treated as a digital financial asset, not a commodity. That change brought heavy consequences:

• Crypto exchanges now need a full OJK license to operate
• Minimum paid-up capital jumped to IDR 100 billion (about $6.3 million USD)
• Companies must maintain at least IDR 50 billion in equity at all times
• Capital cannot come from money laundering or terrorist funding sources

Existing platforms had until July 2025 to comply. Many couldn’t make the cut. Smaller exchanges shut down. Others merged. Some foreign platforms pulled out entirely, unable to meet the capital requirements or navigate the new reporting obligations.

Asset Whitelist: Less Is More

Under BAPPEBTI, exchanges could list almost anything. That led to a flood of low-quality, high-risk tokens. OJK changed that.

By April 2025, every exchange had to revalidate its entire list of tradable assets. Any token that didn’t meet OJK’s new standards-like transparency, liquidity, and technical security-had to be removed. The cutoff date for reapproval was February 2025. After that, listing a non-approved asset became a violation.

The result? The approved list dropped from over 850 to under 120. Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, and a few others made the cut. Thousands of obscure tokens vanished from trading platforms. For investors, this meant fewer scams. For the market, it meant more credibility.

Taxation: VAT Gone, Income Tax Remains

The tax rules changed just as dramatically. On August 1, 2025, new regulations from the Ministry of Finance took effect.

Before 2025, every crypto trade was subject to Value Added Tax (VAT). If you bought Bitcoin for IDR 100 million and sold it for IDR 150 million, you paid VAT on the full IDR 150 million sale. That made trading expensive and complicated.

Now, under Minister of Finance Regulation No. 50 of 2025 (PMK 50), VAT on crypto trades is gone. The government no longer treats crypto as a good being delivered. Instead, it’s treated like a financial asset-similar to stocks or bonds.

But income tax still applies. If you profit from selling crypto, you pay capital gains tax. The rate depends on your total income and tax bracket, just like any other investment. The new rules also simplified reporting. Exchanges now automatically report transaction data to the tax authority, reducing the burden on individual traders.

Compliance: Real-Time Monitoring and Reporting

Crypto businesses now operate under intense scrutiny. OJK Regulation No. 27 of 2024 requires:

• Real-time transaction monitoring
• Immediate reporting of suspicious activity to PPATK (Indonesia’s financial intelligence unit)
• Strict data protection for customer information
• Quarterly financial and operational reports to OJK

Platforms must also prove they have systems to detect fraud, insider trading, and market manipulation. OJK can now freeze accounts, block transactions, and revoke licenses without warning if violations are found.

The collaboration between OJK, Bank Indonesia, and PPATK means there’s no blind spot. If someone tries to move large amounts of crypto to hide funds, the system flags it fast.

What’s Still Banned-and Why

Despite all the progress, one rule hasn’t changed: crypto cannot be used as payment. You still can’t pay your electric bill with Ethereum or buy a phone with Litecoin.

The government’s stance is simple: crypto is too volatile. If your salary is paid in Bitcoin and its value drops 30% overnight, you can’t pay your rent. That risks economic instability.

Stablecoins-tokens pegged to the rupiah or dollar-are the main exception being pushed by industry groups. Some fintech startups are lobbying to allow stablecoins for payments, arguing they’re less risky. But as of October 2025, the government has not approved any such use.

Who Wins and Who Loses

The new rules have reshaped the market:

• Investors now have safer platforms, clearer rules, and better protection. Fraud is harder to hide.
• Exchanges with deep pockets and strong compliance teams are thriving. Smaller players are struggling or disappearing.
• Traders face fewer scam coins and lower taxes, but must deal with more reporting and stricter KYC.
• Startups building crypto-based services face higher barriers. They need capital, legal teams, and time to get licensed.

The big winners are the institutions. Banks and traditional financial firms are watching closely. Some are already exploring partnerships with licensed crypto platforms to offer custody or trading services to their clients.

What’s Next?

The transition is mostly done. The deadlines have passed. The licenses have been issued. But the real test is just beginning.

Will OJK crack down on decentralized exchanges (DEXs) that operate outside Indonesia’s borders? Can they regulate DeFi protocols that don’t have a physical headquarters? How will they handle foreign investors who want to trade Indonesian crypto assets?

One thing is clear: Indonesia is no longer a wild west for crypto. It’s becoming a regulated market-with rules, consequences, and oversight. That’s good for long-term growth. But it’s also a warning: if you’re still treating crypto like a get-rich-quick scheme, the system now has the tools to stop you.