Cryptocurrency trading future is now set up in Indonesia


February 19, 2019 AtoZ Markets  Indonesia will soon have its crypto space under the Regulatory Framework designed by the authorities. The country’s financial authority has set new regulations for the trading of cryptocurrencies on futures exchanges in Indonesia.

The Indonesian Commodity Futures Trading Supervisory Agency (Bappebti) has released an official press release in which it declares that the agency has imposed a legal framework for the digital assets futures and cryptocurrency. A regulator at Indonesia’s Ministry of Trade has noted that under regulations, cryptocurrency futures exchanges is aspiring to operate in the country will have to get registered and approved before they start working.

Main changes after the latest regulatory framework

Back in June, Indonesia decided to consider crypto assets as commodities which can be traded on the country’s futures exchange. The new regulations confirmed the same officially identifying cryptocurrency assets as commodities. Moreover, the announced framework is the inclusion of many important rules especially for those involved in in the crypto futures space. These rules put emphasis on the technical aspect of featuring crypto futures contracts on exchanges platform. The regulations are also designed to promote the adoption of cryptocurrencies as a trade-able commodity.

On this, the chief of the agency, Indrasari Wisnu Wardhana notes that the regulations have been introduced with an aim to provide legal clarity to the crypto futures sector. Also, it will ensure the security of both consumers and investors. With that being said, Indonesians are going to face a number of restrictions due to the regulations. According to the regulations, in order to get approval, the firm needs to have a strong security system and minimum of three employees who are Certified Information System Security Professionals (CISSP).

Moreover, as the document which drafts the rules and registration requirements notes that futures traders and clearing houses that offer crypto futures trading must maintain a closing capital balance of a minimum of 1.2 trillion IDR ($85 million). Additionally, these firms will also have to pay to pay at least 1.5 trillion IDR (Indonesian rupiahs). Due to much higher minimum capital, crypto traders are not happy with the watchdogs. However, these new set of regulations are not applicable for initial coin offerings (ICOs). Notably, ICOs are banned in Indonesia.

Bitcoin trading volume hiked in Indonesia

Bitcoin trading volume has more than doubled in Indonesia on P2P crypto trading platform LocalBitcoins, from 222 Bitcoin worth roughly $0.8 million for the week ended February, which was up from 102 Bitcoin. The record-breaking volume coincides with the country’s regulations for cryptocurrencies, which legalize cryptocurrency exchanges and classify Bitcoin, Ethereum and altcoins as commodities.

Indonesia’s commodity futures regulator opened the door to the massive inflow of Bitcoin trades by issuing regulation No.5 on February 8, which provides legal certainty and authorizes digital currencies as trading commodities.

Bitcoin trading volume in Indonesia on crypto exchange Indodax has soared in the past seven days, more than doubling, according to data compiled by CoinGecko. BTC trading shot past $5.2 million, up from $2.6 million on February 11.

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