TLDR
- Indonesia’s PPATK wants an extra $31.7M for its 2027 budget to fight online gambling and money laundering
- The increase would more than triple the agency’s current budget to $47.3M
- PPATK warned gambling transactions could spike during the 2026 FIFA World Cup
- Indonesia’s QRIS digital payment system has been linked to football betting transactions
- Despite a drop in turnover, Indonesia recorded 422.1 million gambling transactions in 2025
Indonesia’s financial intelligence agency, PPATK, has asked for an extra IDR516.4 billion — around $31.7 million — to fund its 2027 operations. The request would push the agency’s total budget to $47.3 million, more than three times what it currently receives.
PPATK says the money is needed to strengthen work across transaction monitoring, financial investigations, international cooperation, and technology systems. The agency has argued that digital financial channels are increasingly being used to move gambling-related funds.
Budget Would Expand Monitoring Capacity
If the budget is approved, PPATK would have greater resources to track suspicious financial flows and support enforcement efforts across multiple agencies. Lawmakers have already expressed backing for the proposal, giving it political momentum as it moves through the budget process.
The agency has linked the funding request directly to the scale of illegal gambling activity it is dealing with. In 2025, Indonesia recorded 422.1 million gambling transactions and IDR36.01 trillion — around $2.4 billion — in deposits, even as overall turnover fell.
That level of activity has kept pressure on PPATK to maintain and expand its enforcement work. The budget increase is meant to help the agency keep pace with that demand.
PPATK also flagged the 2026 FIFA World Cup as a potential risk period. The agency said it has already detected transaction patterns similar to those seen ahead of previous major football tournaments.
It also confirmed that Indonesia’s QRIS digital payment system has been used for football betting transactions. Some gambling funds have been moved through nominee bank accounts, the agency added.
World Cup Raises Concerns Over Betting Surge
The timing of the budget request comes as the World Cup approaches. PPATK has said major sporting events tend to drive a rise in betting activity, particularly when fast digital payment systems are available.
The agency’s findings around QRIS point to how quickly gambling transactions can move through mainstream financial infrastructure. That has been a key part of its argument for needing more resources.
Despite a decline in online gambling turnover during 2025, the raw transaction numbers remain high. Over 422 million individual transactions were recorded in a single year, showing the volume of activity PPATK is expected to monitor.
Lawmakers supporting the proposal have said the agency needs better tools to track and recover assets connected to illegal gambling and other financial crimes.
PPATK’s request is now part of the country’s official budget process. The final decision will shape how much the agency can do in 2027 to combat online gambling and the financial crimes tied to it.
The agency most recently flagged the QRIS payment system link to betting transactions as part of its ongoing effort to map how illegal gambling funds move through Indonesia’s financial system.
