The Indonesian Ministry of Commerce is reportedly launching a national cryptocurrency exchange in June this year, six months after its previous goal of December 2022.
The Minister of Commerce, Zulkifli Hasan, shared the new planned release date of February 2 at the opening of the Crypto Literacy Month in Jakarta, noting that the government is currently reviewing which companies meet its criteria to be part of the exchange, according to local news.
There are five active exchanges currently registered with the country’s regulators, and according to Zulkifli, the Ministry’s exchange could encompass all of them.
While these exchanges currently facilitate all operations within the nation, the ministry’s exchange would act as a clearinghouse and custodian in the local cryptocurrency market.
A clearinghouse is essentially a mediator between a buyer and a seller, ensuring that the transaction goes smoothly. At the same time, its role as custodian would allow it to manage the movement of assets between both parties.
The Minister of Commerce urged citizens to be patient with the national cryptocurrency exchange: “Let’s not rush because if you are not ready, things will get complicated. The Government does not want this to hit the public massively because people don’t know much about cryptocurrency trading.”
As Cointelegraph previously reported, Indonesia had planned to set up its cryptocurrency exchange in late 2022, but it was delayed due to a number of hurdles.
Crypto assets in the country are currently traded alongside commodity contracts and supervised by the Commodity Futures Trading Regulatory Agency — also known as Bappebti — but the regulatory power will shift to the Financial Services Authority following the creation of a national exchange.
In the country, crypto assets are currently traded alongside commodity contracts and are overseen by the Commodity Futures Trading Regulatory Agency -also known as Bappebti-, but the poder regulator will pass to the Financial Services Authority after the creation of the national exchange.
The regulatory change comes in response to new cryptocurrency regulations ratified on December 15, which recognizes cryptocurrencies and other digital assets as regulated financial securities.
On December 5, Bank Indonesia Governor Perry Warjiyo announced that the digital currency the central bank planned to launch would be the only legal tender in the country.
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