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View all search resultsPPATK defends dormant accounts suspension amid backlash
Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (PPATK) head Ivan Yustiavandana denied any intention to limit ones’ rights to bank transactions with the dormant account suspension policy, saying that the move was taken to prevent criminal acts that often exploit inactive bank accounts.
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An illustration of savings book issued by several Indonesian banks. (Shutterstock/Dekka Raya)
T
he Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (PPATK) has defended its move to suspend 122 million dormant bank accounts in a bid to curb illegal transactions, a move slammed by legal and economic experts who argued that it harmed the public amid mounting complaints.
The blocking, or called “transaction suspension” by the center, was applied to dormant activities with no outgoing transactions for three to 12 months, depending on each bank’s policy. The suspension had been rolled out gradually since May.
As of this week, all affected accounts had been reactivated, according to the PPATK. The reactivation only came following public backlash, when customers took to social media to protest the sudden suspension. They complained about poor communication and uncertainty over the status of their funds.
PPATK head Ivan Yustiavandana said his office had no intention of limiting individual’s rights to bank transactions. He further defended the account suspension as a preventive measure to “protect customers” from money laundering and other criminal activities that often exploit dormant accounts, while assuring customers’ funds remain intact.
“Many gamblers or criminal syndicates misuse dormant accounts, and bank account trading practices further increase the risk,” he said during a press briefing on Wednesday, referring to a practice where a customer sells their bank account to someone else.
“That’s why we imposed the suspension, to protect them,” Ivan went on to say.
