Local media screwed up! Jokowi is not banning foreign acquisitions in Indonesia’s tech scene

Startup Asia Jakarta 2014 broke records with its number of attendees and it seems fair to say that Indonesia’s tech startup ecosystem is growing fast. So far, every week of 2015 has brought some form of tech investment news in the archipelago. From a founder’s standpoint, these investments come with a hope that a startup can someday make a lucrative exit, whether in the form of an IPO or acquisition.

So you can imagine the commotion created yesterday when news broke through local media that the Indonesian president Joko Widodo (aka Jokowi) was placing a ban on foreign acquisitions of Indonesia’s online businesses. However, there’s just one small – and relieving – hitch: It’s not true.

Triawan Munaf, Indonesia’s new head of creative economy told Tech in Asia that Mr. Jokowi does not want to prohibit foreign investors from acquiring local tech startups. Instead, he only called for the government to help support local online businesses. With government support, should an acquisition be offered by a foreign investor in the future, the logic is that the business can potentially be sold at a higher price.

Munaf says the president simply urged him protect local online businesses, but is in no way enforcing a regulation. “There is not a ban,” says Munaf. “ The president does not want any such prohibition.” Munaf added that even if the government was to make such a regulation, he would ensure that the regulation not restrict the growth and purchase of online businesses. “It would still be a win-win no matter what,” says Munaf.

The government is currently talking to a number of practitioners on how it can contribute to help develop the existing startup ecosystem. Munaf also said that he was interested in reviewing government regulations surrounding the Negative Investment List, which limits or bars foreign investment altogether in certain sectors of the Indonesian economy.

See: 10 things you need to know before investing in Indonesia