Prime Minister Office Use of e-payment cards
Many banks in Indonesia issue e-payment cards. They call it e-money.

The e-money cards are anonymous. They are topped up by transferring cash into the e-money cards at convenience stores, supermarkets and at banks.

The e-money cards are used to pay road tolls and parking fees. They are also accepted in many supermarkets and convenient stores. 

The merchants have only one device which is linked to a gateway that connects to the various participating banks. 

My friend in Jakarta told me that many merchants, including small ones, accept e-payment using the e-money cards or QR codes (e.g. GrabPay and other platforms). They also accept cash, but e-payments are quite common.

I am surprised that they are ahead of Singapore in the adoption of e-payments. I am disappointed at the many excuses that many people put forward to explain why there is no need to move to e-payment in Singapore. We are quite backward.

Tan Kin Lian

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