Indonesia cracks down on online gambling

Authorities freeze 5,000 bank accounts holding deposits worth $36.2 million

JAKARTA, Indonesia (MNTV ).– Indonesian authorities have frozen over 5,000 bank accounts linked to online gambling, with deposits totaling approximately 600 billion rupiah ($36.2 million) in recent months, reports Jakarta Globe.  

The Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Center (PPATK) has played a key role in the government’s ongoing crackdown on online gambling, which began during President Joko Widodo’s second term. The agency has been tasked with identifying suspicious accounts and transactions and initiating freezes.

“We have frozen those accounts since February, and the National Police have followed up by blocking them,” PPATK Head Ivan Yustiavandana said.

The action followed the agency’s detection of suspicious domestic and international transfers allegedly connected to online gambling operators, Ivan added.

“The core objective of this law enforcement initiative is to protect the public from the social harms of online gambling, which often drives victims to drug trafficking, online fraud, and even prostitution in order to sustain their addiction. It can also lead to the breakdown of families,” he said.

The administration of President Prabowo Subianto has intensified anti-gambling efforts, removing nearly 900,000 pieces of online gambling-related content from various digital platforms by blocking websites and IP addresses, or taking down posts from social media.

Despite tighter enforcement, Indonesian authorities have observed a rising number of citizens voluntarily entering the online gambling industry abroad, especially in Cambodia, according to the Foreign Affairs Ministry.