Indonesia is promoting the global adoption of its Quick Response Code Indonesian Standard (QRIS) payment system despite criticism from the United States regarding potential trade barriers.

Bank Indonesia Deputy Governor Filianingsih Hendarta confirmed that QRIS is now compatible with payment systems in Singapore, Malaysia, and Thailand.

Future collaborations are planned with Japan, India, South Korea, China, and Saudi Arabia.

Launched in 2019, QRIS facilitates digital payments and has recorded 56.3 million users and 2.6 billion transactions valued at 262.1 trillion rupiah (around US$15.6 billion) as of the first quarter of 2025.

A new feature, QRIS Tap, which uses near-field communication (NFC) technology, has gained popularity since its introduction in March 2025.

It has facilitated 42.9 million transactions by 20.8 million users, with over 1.4 million merchants now NFC-enabled for QRIS Tap nationwide.

This comes as the US has expressed concerns over Indonesia’s QRIS and National Payment Gateway (NPG) policies, arguing they disadvantage foreign companies like Visa and Mastercard.

The US has expressed concerns over Indonesia’s QRIS and National Payment Gateway (NPG) policies, arguing they disadvantage foreign companies like Visa and Mastercard.

These concerns are part of broader trade disputes that include US tariffs of up to 32% on Indonesian goods starting in July 2025.

In response, Indonesia’s chief economic affairs Minister Airlangga Hartarto said the country is open to foreign payment operators. He emphasized that Visa and Mastercard continue to operate freely in Indonesia.

🔗 Source: Jakarta Globe

🧠 Food for thought

1️⃣ Indonesia’s QRIS expansion reflects global QR payments boom

Indonesia’s push to expand QRIS internationally comes amid explosive growth in the global QR code payments market, which is projected to grow from $14.74 billion in 2024 to $17.66 billion in 2025 at a 19.8% CAGR 1.

The broader QR payments ecosystem is expected to exceed $8 trillion by 2029, indicating Indonesia is positioning itself strategically in a rapidly expanding market 2.

This growth context explains why Indonesia is undeterred by US pressure. QRIS adoption aligns with global payment trends and positions Indonesia as a leader in the transition from card-based to QR-based payment systems.