12.09.202501:31:47UTC+00China, Indonesia Roll Out New Framework for Local Currency Settlements

The People's Bank of China (PBOC) and Bank Indonesia (BI) officially rolled out a local currency settlement framework on Thursday, as per a Xinhua report. This initiative is designed to enhance the utilization of local currencies in trade and investment between China and Indonesia. It builds upon a memorandum of understanding signed in May, which expands the previous cooperation framework to include all balance-of-payments items under local currency settlements. Additionally, the central bank governors announced the commencement of a two-way trial for the China–Indonesia cross-border QR code interconnection project, facilitating transactions in local currencies. The full implementation of this system is anticipated by 2025. Pan Gongsheng, the Governor of the PBOC, emphasized the importance of further collaboration between the two central banks in areas such as payment system integration, the use of local currencies, and digital currencies.