Indonesian online lender’s $1m lawsuit withdrawn (updated)

Update (Oct. 14, 5:22 p.m.): This article was updated to include the latest statement from UangTeman regarding the lawsuit’s withdrawal.

On October 1, 2021, a Japanese company called Real Kapital sued Digital Alpha Indonesia – the legal entity behind online lender UangTeman – for US$1 million. The stated reason was that UangTeman defaulted on its loan obligations.

However, on October 12, UangTeman shared a statement saying that Real Kapital has submitted a letter to the South Jakarta District Court to withdraw its lawsuit against the online lender. The letter also requests the lawsuit’s removal from the case register, according to the statement.

Previously, UangTeman founder and CEO Aidil Zulkifli told Tech in Asia that his company did not have any legal or contractual relationships with Real Kapital nor did UangTeman sign any related documents.

Zulkifli also highlighted that per regulations from Indonesia’s Financial Services Authority (OJK), balance sheet lending is not allowed for peer-to-peer lenders like UangTeman.

UangTeman founder and CEO Aidil Zulkifli / Photo credit: UangTeman

As reported by Detik, the lawsuit requests that UangTeman honor a letter of undertaking signed on April 21, 2021. According to the letter, UangTeman is liable to pay Real Kapital US$1 million along with 6% in annual interest.

UangTeman is no stranger to internal issues, though it appeared to have turned things around last year. In February 2020, the company said it had closed the second tranche of its US$10 million series B fundraise.

However, sources have since told Tech in Asia that the deal fell through due to the Covid-19 pandemic.