T

he Jakarta administration, in cooperation with city-owned lender Bank DKI, plans to issue a multifunctional card dubbed the Jakarta One Card.

Governor Basuki '€œAhok'€ Tjahaja Purnama said the idea derived from Hong Kong'€™s Octopus Card. The Jakarta One Card would be part of the city'€™s larger Jakarta Smart City program.

The Octopus Card, launched in 1997, is a smart card that facilitates electronic payments in Hong Kong. It is not only used to pay fares for Hong Kong'€™s mass transit system but also to carry out transactions in retail stores.

It also has a student version, which provides more benefits. The Octopus Card has been adopted by London in its creation of the Oyster Card.

'€œCurrently we are coordinating with Bank DKI and the Jakarta branch of Bank Indonesia [BI] to further discuss this concept. The card can only be issued with a permit from BI,'€ Ahok said during an event to commemorate Jakarta Smart City'€™s one-year anniversary.

Similar to the Octopus Card, Ahok said that the Jakarta One Card would facilitate payment for the city'€™s public transportation, including the city-owned PT Transportasi Jakarta (Transjakarta), as well as the upcoming MRT and light rail transit (LRT) systems.

Further, he said, the Jakarta One Card would contain information on its holder, not only their basic data but also financial information, family card number and ID number, among others.

'€œTherefore, we will be aware of a resident'€™s needs with this one card,'€ Ahok said.

Separately, communications and information agency head Ii Karunia said that the card would be different from existing electronic money cards issued by a number of banks, namely state-owned lenders Bank Mandiri, Bank BRI and Bank BNI, as well as private lenders Bank BCA and Bank Mega. Their cards facilitate payment for Transjakarta rides, with some allowing commuter train ticket and mini market purchases. '€œThe Jakarta One Card will not only be able to make electronic payments, it will also be able to support all of the city administration'€™s programs,'€ Ii told The Jakarta Post at City Hall on Tuesday.

Much like the Octopus Card, Ii said that the Jakarta One Card would be personalized according to the needs of its users. For example, he said, needy students would receive a card that could also function as a Jakarta Smart Card (KJP) so they could receive educational support from the city administration.

'€œNeedy students will also receive a discount for their commute if they pay fares using the Jakarta One Card,'€ he said.

Ii said that his agency would be responsible for assisting Bank DKI, which was set to issue the card. The bank will manage the system and be responsible for issuing and monitoring the use of the card.

'€œThere is still a long way to go before we can issue this card. Hopefully the cards can be used in 2017, at the latest,'€ Ii said.

Separately, Bank DKI corporate secretary Zulfarsyah declined to comment on the Jakarta One Card, as its concept was still being discussed internally. He, however, assured that the bank was working to make the card possible.

'€œThe concept is still in its early stages. There is not much we can inform for the time being because many aspects are still being discussed,'€ Zulfarsyah told the Post over the phone on Tuesday.

The city administration recently carried out a total overhaul of Bank DKI'€™s management to improve its performance and focus more on developing IT systems, as was evident in the city'€™s choice for the bank'€™s new leaders. Kresno Sediarsi, a former director of technology and operations at Bank Mandiri, was appointed Bank DKI'€™s president director while former director of technology and operations at Bank BNI, Honggo Widjojo Kangmasto, was named president commissioner.