Antara News is reporting that state-run pawnbroker PT Pegadaian has been named as the national bullion bank to accommodate Indonesia’s capability to produce gold bars, State-Owned Enterprises Minister Erick Thohir said on Thursday (9/1/25.)
Speaking to the media in Jakarta Thohir said that the bullion bank is expected to support the downstreaming of gold commodities, aligning with the gold bar processing collaboration established between state-owned miner PT Antam and gold miner PT Freeport Indonesia, adding that they will develop a system to produce sufficient gold reserves that will be made available as public savings.
“I have said earlier that we had to pursue the establishment of our first bullion bank to accelerate downstreaming, a proposal that has been well-received by stakeholders, including the OJK (Financial Services Authority),” he said.
The minister then urged the private sector to apply for a permit to become a bullion bank in the hopes of dispensing Indonesia’s gold reserves to the community, and thereby reducing reliance on the government. “That way, our gold reserves can be stored not only by the government but also by the public,” he explained.
Antara News reports that the OJK issued a letter earlier granting approval to PT Pegadaian to operate as a bullion bank offering a range of services, such as gold deposits, working capital loans, and gold trading.
On January 4, 2025, president director of PT Pegadaian Damar, Latri Setiawan, said that his company has finally become Indonesia’s first bullion bank following a two-year process to obtain a business permit.
“Pegadaian has been serving the community for 123 years while making improvements and offering both pawn and non-pawn services. Gold transactions account for 90 percent of our pawn activities, which form the core of our business,” he said.
Source: Antara News
Stock photo by Michael Steinberg on Pexels
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