Forbes Indonesia Magazine - April 2021

In this issue

The accelerated embracing of technology solutions and platforms by companies and consumers alike has been the over-riding theme of business changes during the pandemic. Also regularly in the head-lines is the potential of reversing some of the negative climate change impacts which economic developments globally over recent decades had deepened. Whilst there is a long way to go, the period of limited activity during 2020 showed the potential for rapid improvements in air and water quality that a lowering of pollution could bring. Several cities are now adopting new regulations to embrace eco-friendly activities to capitalize on the improvements made already whilst the convergence of technology and environmental solutions is being seen through the number of telecommunication related technology companies seeking to partner in the investment into electric powered vehicles and power cells. With Indonesia already on the path to the development of electric vehicle battery technologies there is much opportunity for this to become an important economic success story locally.

Indonesia to Establish Electric Battery Corporation

Indonesia is gearing up for establishing an electric battery company to meet the country's prospective development of electric vehicles including motorcycles, cars and buses. The State Owned Enterprises Ministry has been preparing a holding company, Indonesia Battery Corporation (IBC) that will build a battery industry for electric vehicles, which was expected to be completed in the first half of 2021.

2 mins

Sjamsul Nursalim Clears Wanted List

The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) decided to stop its investigation on graft cases surrounding Bank Indonesia Liquidity Support (BLBI) that named Sjamsul Nursalim and his wife Itjih Nursalim as suspects since 10 June 2019.

1 min

Japan: the Land of the Rising Stocks

The Japanese equity market is the 3rd largest in the world and responds to global economic conditions more sensitively than other developed markets. Many international investors still associate investing in Japanese equities with “Japan lost decade “ and the narrative of Japan as a country with no growth and a stock market that chronically underperformed the US and even European equities. The coronavirus pandemic has done what seven years of Abenomics could not: push Japan’s Nikkei 225 benchmark above the 25,000 marks for the first time since 1991.

2 mins

Agrarian Reform in Cities: Options by the Government

Agrarian reform is a goal of the government since the promulgation of the agrarian law of 1960. The agrarian reform concept has also expanded, it's now beyond the redistribution of farms to the farmers but also land to the non-farmers. In cities like Jakarta, farmers are certainly not an essential subject. Instead, illegal houses and illegal occupancies that create slum areas are more problematic. Those are people who live in a building on a land plot that he does not own or cannot prove legal ownership. Never-ending legal disputes involving many parties claiming land ownership are a huge problem to be resolved.

2 mins

Room for Recovery

RedDoorz books growth amid pandemic

5 mins

EV in Indonesia–Execution is the Key

Indonesia is rapidly becoming the citadel of Electric Vehicles (EV) in the Region. The media has been abuzz with news of leading car manufacturers like Hyundai and Toyota exploring to set up their EV factories in Java and, of course, the on-again-off-again news of Tesla setting up their EV battery facility locally.

3 mins

Credit Card Killer

Millennials were shunning plastic and supposedly wary of consumer debt. AFFIRM ’s MAX LEVCHIN saw a way to repackage buying now and paying later for younger folks—and it’s made him a billionaire.

7 mins

Infrastructure Review

The World Climate Change Conference, COP26, will be taking place in November 2021 in Glasgow, Scotland. Following a period of US indifference to such global discussions as espoused by its predecessor, the new administration's decision to immediately re-join the Paris Accord will help to bring a stronger emphasis and commitment from major global economies to the concrete actions which are needed to address the impacts of climate change on the world's ecosystem. A strong delegation is expected from Indonesia to set out what has been done towards its commitments to cut back carbon emissions as well as to help shape the discussions for future actions.

2 mins

Researcher - Adi Utarini

Professor Adi Utarini is an Indonesian public health researcher fighting dengue in Indonesia. She worked with the World Mosquito Program (WMP), a joint initiative between Monash University and Gadjah Mada University research team, and has successfully utilized Wolbachia bacteria to fight dengue fever disease - one of the country's major health problems. There were nearly 96,000 infection cases in 2020 in Indonesia with 661 fatalities.

1 min

LONG BET

Pandu Sjahrir Bets on Unicorn IPOs on the Indonesia Stock Exchange

9 mins

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Forbes Indonesia Magazine Description:

Forbes Indonesia is a world-class business magazine of uncompromising quality and scope, providing insights and information to readers critical to their business and inspiring them to greater success