Indonesia Follows Singapore's Lead in Establishing National Investment Holding Agency

Indonesia's new President Prabowo will set up a national investment holding company similar to Singapore's Temasek to consolidate and leverage decentralized investments.The agency is called Daya Anagata Nusantara Investment Management Agency (Daya Anagata Nusantara), and Prabowo appointed Muliaman Hadad, a former director of the Financial Services Authority, to head the agency.The head, who was Indonesia's ambassador to Switzerland, said that after the policy is approved by the parliament, the government will immediately set up this investment agency to manage state investments outside of the state revenue and expenditure budget is currently discussing the structure of this investment agency with other ministries, and that the goal would be to act as a state-owned investment company like Singapore's Temasek Holdings.

He explained that the agency is not the same as a state-owned enterprise, but rather similar to the Indonesian Investment Agency, but with a broader investment scope. The Indonesian government established the agency to centralize investment management in key sectors such as banking, telecommunications, construction and mining, to build investor confidence through efficient asset management, and to be open to privatizing certain non-essential businesses. Analysts say Prabowo's plan could change the market landscape and attract foreign investors, while reducing state control over non-critical areas may spur private investment and boost economic growth in all sectors.