Indonesians shun cash as QR code payments now the norm

Rate of QR payments in South-east Asia’s largest economy has tripled nearly every year since this service was launched in 2019.

Santy Caesar, a 32-year-old from Jakarta, was out shopping during a vacation in Bangkok earlier this year when she realised her credit card was blocked due to the bank detecting an unusual purchase pattern.

As she hunted for other payment options, she noticed that many shops in the Thai capital accepted quick response (QR) code payments via an app that she managed to link to her local bank account.

Buoyed by the ease of going cashless when overseas, she is also going to rely on QR payments for her next trip – to Singapore next March for the Taylor Swift concert.

“It never crossed my mind that I could make any transaction (in Thailand) without having to change my rupiah to Thai baht first,” she said, noting that QR payments save her the hassle of carrying cash and ease her worries about pickpockets.

Indonesia – the largest economy in South-east Asia – is one of five countries in the region that last year signed a landmark cross-border payments deal that allows transactions through QR code. The others involved in this ambitious project are Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and the Philippines.

A fortnight ago, it was announced that businesses and individuals from Indonesia will be able to scan QR codes provided by e-payments service provider Nets in Singapore by the end of this year. And Singapore travellers to Indonesia will be able to use their smartphones to make QR code payments from their Nets-linked bank accounts.

Source: The Business Times