The government is expected to launch the Daya Anagata Nusantara Investment Management Agency (BP Investasi Danantara), a new institution predicted to become a superholding of State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) whose authority is to integrate separate government assets in ministries and SOEs.
President Prabowo Subianto has appointed Muliaman Hadad as Head of BP Investasi Danantara. Muliaman, who is also a former Chairman of the Board of Commissioners of the Indonesian Financial Services Authority (OJK), said this agency will carry out functions similar to Singapore’s Temasek Holdings and the Indonesian Investment Authority (INA) which has acted as a sovereign wealth fund since 2020.
Danantara will be officially launched on November 8, 2024 at the Presidential Palace in Jakarta. According to Muliaman, this agency will not only manage investment funds, but also focus on innovation in managing government assets to optimize the economic value of the assets owned.
“I have been tasked to ensure that all preparations are well underway for the official launch by the president himself on November 8,” Muliaman said after the meeting at the presidential palace in Jakarta on Monday, October 28, 2024, as quoted by Channel News Asia.
Economist at the Institute for Development of Economics and Finance (Indef), Tauhid Ahmad, said the establishment of Danantara as a superholding is the first step to create strong and consolidated investment management.
However, Tauhid suggested that the existence of Danantara as a superholding does not immediately replace the Ministry of SOEs which functions as a regulator. Later, the superholding will act as the parent of SOEs in managing corporate actions, investments, and development of state assets, while the Ministry of SOEs will continue to act as a supervisor and regulator.
Tauhid also highlighted that this integrated investment management requires clear regulations, especially regarding the division of authority between the Ministry of SOEs and Danantara to avoid potential overlapping roles.
“If Danantara functions as a superholding, its authority must be regulated in the revision of the SOE Law. Otherwise, there will be a tug-of-war of authority between the head of the superholding and the Minister of SOEs,” he said, as quoted by IDX Channel.
Danantara is expected to become a solid center for asset and investment management to increase Indonesia’s economic competitiveness in the global market and attract more foreign investment.
