President Prabowo Inaugurates Pegadaian Gold Bank Service, Projected to Add IDR 245 Trillion to GDP

President of the Republic of Indonesia, Prabowo Subianto, officially launched the Pegadaian Gold Bank Service at The Gade Tower, Jakarta, on Wednesday (Feb 26, 2025). In his speech, President Prabowo expressed hope that the establishment of the Gold Bank would boost the country's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and create new job opportunities in Indonesia.

“We hope this will increase our GDP and add IDR 245 trillion,” Prabowo stated on Friday (Feb 28, 2025).

He also highlighted Indonesia’s gold production, which has risen from 100 tons to 160 tons per year. According to him, this is the right time to enhance financial service ecosystems to maximize the country’s gold reserves.

Gold Bank’s Economic Impact

BRI President Director, Sunarso, explained that two key factors contribute to the Gold Bank's potential to add IDR 245 trillion to GDP.

First, the government aims to integrate public gold holdings into the formal financial system. Currently, around 1,800 tons of gold are privately owned but remain outside the financial system. Through the Gold Bank, this gold can be monetized and utilized as part of development liquidity.

"With gold monetization, economic growth can be accelerated through additional development liquidity," Sunarso said at a press conference on Wednesday (Feb 26, 2025).

Second, the Gold Bank enables Indonesia to process its gold reserves into derivative products, increasing domestic value-added. This initiative will reduce the country’s reliance on large-scale gold imports, as domestic reserves can now meet demand.

"This measure is projected to create 1.8 million new jobs and contribute IDR 245 trillion to economic growth," he added.

BRI and Pegadaian Strengthen Gold Bank Ecosystem

As the parent company of the ultra-micro holding group that includes Pegadaian and PNM, BRI plays a key role in facilitating transactions within the Gold Bank ecosystem. Transactions can be conducted directly through BRI or via its subsidiary, Pegadaian.

"Can transactions be done directly through BRI? Yes. We facilitate them via BRImo, but Pegadaian holds the greatest growth potential, which in turn supports BRI’s expansion," Sunarso explained.

As part of its digital innovation efforts, BRI has introduced a Gold Investment feature within its BRImo super app. This feature allows users to start investing in gold with a minimum amount of IDR 10,000. Since its launch in February 2024, this feature has recorded transaction volumes reaching IDR 279.8 billion as of December 2024.