Indonesia’s journalists, regulators, and fintech associations collaborate to strengthen financial literacy and crack down on illegal loan sharks, addressing a surge in consumer complaints and online fraud cases.
Journalists, regulators and Indonesia’s online lending industry have stepped up a joint effort to tackle illegal loan sharks operating on digital platforms, after the Indonesian Journalists Association, better known as PWI, held a workshop in Jakarta on Thursday with the Indonesia Fintech Funding Association, or AFPI, and the Financial Services Authority, OJK.
The event, titled “Pintar untuk Inklusi Keuangan: Jurnalisme untuk Kepentingan Publik”, was framed as both a media training exercise and a public-interest campaign. PWI chairman Akhmad Munir said the organisation wanted reporters to be better equipped to turn complicated digital finance terms into clear, accurate stories, particularly for readers outside major cities who are often easiest to target by illegal lenders.
AFPI chairman Entjik S. Djafar said the legitimate peer-to-peer lending industry exists to fill a large funding gap in Indonesia. He said the country’s total credit needs stand at about Rp3,600 trillion, while conventional finance covers around Rp1,100 trillion and regulated fintech lenders contribute roughly Rp105 trillion to Rp110 trillion. That shortfall, he said, is what illegal operators have exploited with aggressive marketing and abusive collection practices.
OJK welcomed the collaboration and stressed the need to separate licensed fintech lenders from illegal pinjaman online. The regulator said the press plays a critical role in warning consumers and helping people understand where the real risks lie, especially as financial fraud becomes more organised online. OJK figures show the problem remains significant: between January 2025 and January 2026, it received 29,828 complaints involving illegal financial entities, including 24,281 linked to illegal online lending, and it identified and shut down 2,263 illegal lending operations.
The workshop also fits into a broader nationwide push by OJK to improve financial literacy and consumer protection. By April 2026, the authority said it had carried out 1,252 financial literacy activities reaching more than 7.29 million participants, while its Sikapi Uangmu education platform continued to draw large audiences. In parallel, OJK and Satgas PASTI had closed 954 illegal financial entities, including 951 illegal online lenders, and the Indonesia Anti-Scam Centre had recovered more than Rp614.30 billion in victims’ funds. For ordinary borrowers, the message is simple: in Indonesia’s fast-growing digital finance market, the difference between a licensed lender and an illegal one can decide whether a short-term cash fix becomes a manageable loan or a long-term financial problem.
Disclaimer: This article is intended to inform and educate, not to recommend or endorse any financial product, investment or strategy. Please consider your own financial circumstances and seek professional advice where appropriate before making financial decisions.
