Indonesia Deals Tough Blow To Established FX Firms – Blocks Broker & Information Sites
Indonesia has long been a favorable market with low entry barriers and rudimentary regulation - until now. The nation's regulatory

Indonesia has recently begun to publicly demonstrate objections toward FX firms, both domestic and foreign which operate within its jurisdiction. The nation’s governmental information site, TRUST+, have embarked on a program of listing almost every FX firm as having complaints lodged against it. In addition, a number of main sites and representative offices of very well-known Western brokers and signal service providers are listed as being blocked in Indonesia.
This move comes after Indonesia has become an attractive destination for some retail participants in the forex industry. Whilst the Western world’s financial markets’ regulators have long since set forth comprehensive, and in some cases very expensive stipulations with regard to the means by which FX firms operate, a number of the world’s major brokers and ancillary service providers have been looking east toward emerging market economies.
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With a largely untapped client base, sizable and young domestic population and very few hindrances in relation to government red tape, Indonesia has become an area which many retail brokers consider important. Those who have made inroads into the Asia-Pacific region have garnered a client base from the region over recent times, as was reported by Forex Magnates in detail in the Quarterly Industry Report for Q4 of 2012.
Emerging market economies still have a very long way to go before the national governments of nations such as Indonesia, implement stringent consumer protection laws and resource-heavy entry barriers such as in North America, Australia or Europe. However, this recent publication may indicate that either the regulation of FX in some form is on the Indonesian government’s to-do list, or that the country wishes to stem foreign competition in order to establish home-grown firms.
In order to go some way toward establishing the possible reasoning behind the move, Forex Magnates spoke to Ottelo Deiy, Regional Head, South-East Asia at TNC Markets, who explained that in his opinion, “The regulators have been cautious of margin FX products as investors have faced numerous difficulties with unregulated players hence the forced attack on this product.”
“Domestically investors are overcharged and conditions are not favourable hence the attraction of FX and CFD trading. The regulators will be making some harsh reforms in the coming months,” stated Mr. Deiy.
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Indonesia may be following in the footsteps of Turkey, which back in 2009 played host to a number of OTC FX firms offering many products, and in particular binary options, to a very willing client base, with very little regulatory oversight, if any at all. Today, things are somewhat different, with Turkey having become one of Western Asia’s most prominent financial markets economies, and has a very organized regulatory structure to go with it.
Decade of FX In Indonesia
Indonesia has a somewhat longer history of FX market participants operating within its jurisdiction, some of whom are indigenous. But most of them, as with companies which target a Chinese audience, originate from Russia, and were the first to enter the Indonesian market back in 2003, viewing its potential along the same lines as that of China.
The sites which the Indonesian government portal refers to are:
123belajarforex.com
a-1forex.com
campusforex.blogspot.com
fbs.com
fbsindonesia.com
fbs-indonesia.com
fxcmid.com
gainscope.com
gofbs.com
instafx.biz
instafxneo.com
instasurabaya.com
instavalas.com
jeniusforex.com
jogja-ifx.com
lampungtrading.com
livetradingforex.net
medangold.com
mysmartfx.com
nordfx.com
primaexchanger.com
primatrading.net
pundiarta.com
ramos-exchange.com
speedtrader.com
cobratrading.com
finamglobal.com
forex-mmcis.com
aaafx.com
ironfx.com
mayzus.com
scottrades.com
tusarfx.com
3tgbrokers.com
ac-markets.com
amiralmarkets.co.id
amiralmarkets.com
afbfx.com
agea.com
alpari.com
anakbawangfx.com
andalastrade.com
asiafbs.com
askobit.com
avafx.com
avatrader.com
axitrader.com
belajar-trading.com
betonmarkets.com
bforex.com
bfsforex.com
bmrckita.com
cakrafx.com
choicetrader.com
acehinstafx.bz
acehinsta.com
a-1forex.com
alinstaforex.blogspot.com
citifxpro.com
cmcmarkets.com
cmsfx.com
corsacapital.org
dukascopy.com
ecn4x.com
exness.com
fbs.com
fbsneo.com
finexo.com
forex.com
forex4u.co.id
forex4u.org
forex-a1.com
fxcast.com
fxcc.com
fxclub.com
fxcm.co.uk
fxcm.com
fxcompany.net
fxd24.com
fxdana.com
fxdd.com
fxempire.com
fxind.com
fxnet.com
fxopen.com
fxoptimax.com
fxprimus.com
fxpro.com
fxwaveranger.com
gcitrading.com
getforexrebate.blogspot.com
gfcmarkets.com
gftforex.com
hantecfx.com
hmslux.com
hotforex.com
hotspotfx.com
hymarkets.com
instaforexid.com
instafx.asia
instafxtrader.com
instapips.com
interactivebrokers.com
ironfx.com
just2trade.com
lightspeed.com
liteforex.com
easy-forex.com
lqdmarkets.com
markets.com
masterforex.org
maxofx.com
mbtrading.com
mrcmarkets.com
myfxbook.com
oanda.com
octafx.com
onlineforexbroker.biz
optionhouse.com
optionxpress.com
paxforex.com
pepperstone.com
placetrade.com
profit-fx.blogspot.com
roboforex.com
rvdmarkets.com
saxobank.com
sesefx.com
skyeastfx.com
sogotrade.com
SOURCE: http://trustpositif.kominfo.go.id/?lang=en
With this in mind, a matter for consideration for many brokers and signal providers could be that it is possible that the governments of the emerging markets of the Far East may be investigating the possibilities of raising the currently low entry barriers.
Whether this is occurring in order to protect customers, or to protect the domestic FX industry, is perhaps a moot point.
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however Indonesia should follow the changes or at least begin to clean up the effort as any problems that arise like this. Our people only see opportunities and search results where they are easy to get a chance like its neighbors but the essence is also used as elements of weakness for retail companies from outside –
a threat for some opportunity for others, look at turkey, it means that over 20 brokers have established a full offering, more platforms, more servers, more staff- less profits ….
also, does this mean a potential summit as the demand for b2b will surely prop up :}
I guess atleast there should be some improvement , Indonesia actually is a wide strong community and have alot of proffesional related this product
The Indones*** rule is a tax, it would be difficult to make a broker with low transaction fees because officials are only concerned with its own benefits and their own appetites, supposing happy to see other people’s hard but not happy to see other people happy
Hi James, #1) While I can’t recommend a broker to you, I would say that if you do consider trading with one – that you check their status with the National Futures Association (NFA) on nfa.futures.org/basicnet/ using their Background Affiliation Status Information Center (BASIC) in order to further investigate as part of any due diligence you may conduct. #2) As far as Nadex, yes it appears they are one of the few, if only regulated market places for binary-options-style trading in the U.S at the moment (that I am aware of). #3) With regards to HowWeTrade, I took a quick… Read more »
Hi James, #1) While I can’t recommend a broker to you, I would say that if you do consider trading with one – that you check their status with the National Futures Association (NFA) on nfa.futures.org/basicnet/ using their Background Affiliation Status Information Center (BASIC) in order to further investigate as part of any due diligence you may conduct. #2) As far as Nadex, yes it appears they are one of the few, if only regulated market places for binary-options-style trading in the U.S at the moment (that I am aware of). #3) With regards to HowWeTrade, I took a quick… Read more »
@James – In the US, all binary options must be exchange traded by law, and there are two options, which are NADEX or Cantor Exchange. Within those, there are market-makers which process their trades through NADEX or Cantor, all of whom are operating legally, and the pricing will be the same for each due to it being public information and reports being submitted to the NFA with how the prices were reached.
@James – In the US, all binary options must be exchange traded by law, and there are two options, which are NADEX or Cantor Exchange. Within those, there are market-makers which process their trades through NADEX or Cantor, all of whom are operating legally, and the pricing will be the same for each due to it being public information and reports being submitted to the NFA with how the prices were reached.
in the meantime still the fundamen of economic, finance, goverment regural and most of topic Corruption.
we also regret this could happen, but when seen from the positive side in Indonesia should have started considering the existence of online trade products is wide open. So the method of implementation of competition rules brokers and investors both domestic competitive trading may be done in a more fair in the application of policy rules enforced
as one of Indonesia’s introducing broker with the education and development of knowledge of the trade interests of the investors, we evaluate it may be time for Indonesia to do a lot of collaboration in a discourse like this so they can be adopted and do case study for other countries that are more open
Indonesia government is always corruption corruption and corruption it is very hard to earn profit in local brokers in Indonesia, because they earn money from your losses (they are very tricky and their system is very bad), the local brokers in Indonesia also give some money to the government to make their business runs well. most people already know this dirty conspiration between local forex brokers and the indonesia regulator (bappebti). but in foreign broker the indonesia government will not received any money (means they can’t corruption), that’s why they banned the foreign brokers in Indonesia who didn’t pay them… Read more »
If they block website, what to prevent me from using VPN and seeing the site anyway?
That’s true. I just use VPN with duka anyway, for more stable connection.
Over at FF, people suggest use google dns. It resolve blocked sites anyway.
Indonesia is an unsophisticated financial market. It is a large and lucrative market for scammers because of the low quality of technical knowledge and availability in its financial markets. Whatever it may have in terms of technical expertise is restricted to the elite, the politically connected and to the Chinese minority. It does not extend to the general populace. So competition is scarce and monopolies and oligopolies thrive. Uncompetitive. The problem with Indonesia (and most developing or emerging markets)is that regulation and domestic expertise is low. The kind of Forex operations is that of speculative and unregulated ‘casino’ types. A… Read more »