Purbaya Says Global Investor Tax Incentives Won't Cause Losses
Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa has asserted that providing tax incentives for global investors within the Special Economic Zone (SEZ) for the financial sector will not result in losses for the state. He revealed that the future international financial center in Bali will be modeled after the Dubai International Financial Center (DIFC), spanning an area of approximately 100 hectares.
According to Purbaya, regulations within Bali’s financial economic zone will be specifically tailored, potentially allowing global investors' assets to be exempted from taxes.
"Economists may initially argue that this would lead to losses. No, there was simply nothing there before," he stated during a Financial System Stability Committee press conference in Jakarta on Thursday, May 7, 2026.
The State Treasurer argued that capital entering the SEZ could be directed toward investments in Danantara projects or other high-potential ventures outside the zone. Alternatively, investors could also opt to purchase state bonds.
Purbaya noted that the presence of such a financial center could become a source of financing for both private and government development. "So, we have a new source of financing that may be cheaper than current options, and make our financial landscape more sustainable," he said.
Conversely, Syafruddin Karimi, a lecturer at the Department of Economics at Andalas University, believes that implementing tax incentives in a financial hub carries fiscal risks. He warned that Indonesia could potentially lose significant revenue from large-scale investor groups.
Syafruddin argued that without a strict framework, tax exemptions could become a cheap facility for global investors without providing equivalent contributions to the national economy.
"Therefore, the government must set clear requirements: funds must be recorded within the domestic financial system, meet beneficial ownership transparency standards, remain free from money laundering practices, and directly impact the purchase of national financial instruments or productive investments," he explained when contacted on Wednesday, May 6, 2026.
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