Heaptalk, Jakarta — The Bank of Indonesia (BI) and the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) have inaugurated the implementation of QR payment interconnection between Indonesia and Singapore. This implementation allows users to use their payment application by scanning the Quick Response Code Indonesian Standard (QRIS) or QR Network for Electronic Transfer Singapore (NETS) displayed by Indonesian or Singapore merchants.
“Cross-border QR payment interconnection service between Indonesia and Singapore will encourage quicker, cheaper, transparent, and inclusive payments between countries. This initiative is also a follow-up to the commitment of ASEAN member countries regarding Regional Payment Connectivity (RPC) cooperation and the implementation of the Indonesian Payment System Blueprint 2025 in realizing efficient payment methods.” The Governor of Bank Indonesia, Perry Warijo, affirmed.
This interconnection payment service will expand market access for business practitioners in both countries, specifically SMEs, through increasing the number of new consumers. This payment method is also claimed to facilitate tourists from both countries along with an increase in the tourism industry in the post-pandemic, with approximately 600,000 arrivals from Singapore to Indonesia and a total of 1.1 million tourists in the first half of 2023.
In conjunction with inaugurating the implementation of the QRIS payment method in Singapore, these entities also signed a Letter of Intent (LOI) regarding the local currency settlement framework. This framework will be applied in 2024 to facilitate the settlement of cross-border payment transactions, including QR payments and trade and investment between Indonesia and Singapore using their local currency.
This effort will help entrepreneurs to minimize exposure to exchange rate risk and increase efficiency. The signing of the LOI is also part of a follow-up of the MoU signing of these two central banks regarding increasing bilateral transactions in local currency (LCT framework) in August 2022. Through this framework, QR payment interconnection services between countries will use a direct quotation of local currency exchange rates that appointed cross-currency dealer (ACCD) banks provide.
Managing Director of the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), Ravi Menon, delivered, “QRIS-QR NETS payment interconnection will boost e-commerce activities and tourist spending between these two countries. From now on, the local currency settlement cooperation framework by BI and MAS will also complement QR payment interconnection services through the use of Indonesian Rupiah (IDR) and Singapore Dollars (SGD) to complete payment transactions between countries.”
