Indonesian rupiah
The rupiah is the official currency of Indonesia, issued and controlled by Bank Indonesia. Its name is derived from the Sanskrit word for silver, . Sometimes, Indonesians also informally use the word perak in referring to rupiah in coins. The rupiah is divided into 100 cents, although high inflation has rendered all coins and banknotes denominated in cents obsolete.
The rupiah was introduced in 1946 by Indonesian nationalists fighting for independence. It replaced the Japanese-issued version of the Netherlands Indies gulden which had been introduced during the Japanese occupation in World War II. In its early years, the rupiah was used in conjunction with other currencies, including a new version of the gulden introduced by the Dutch. The Riau Islands and the Indonesian half of New Guinea had their own variants of the rupiah, but these were subsumed into the national rupiah in 1964 and 1971, respectively.
Redenomination
A long-running proposal to redenominate the rupiah has yet to receive formal legislative consideration. Since 2010, Bank Indonesia, as the monetary authority of Indonesia, has repeatedly urged the elimination of the final three zeroes of the currency to facilitate transaction handling, saying the move would not affect its value and significance. In 2015, the government submitted a rupiah redenomination bill to the House of Representatives, but it has not yet been deliberated. In 2017, Bank Indonesia Governor Agus Martowardojo reiterated the call, saying that if redenomination were to start immediately, the process could be complete within a span of seven to eight years. In November 2025, Bank Indonesia is adding a redenomination proposal into its strategic plan and a draft law on based on its recommendation was proposed by the government, with finalization being slated for 2027.Current legal tender
The current commonly-circulated rupiah consists of coins ranging from Rp50 to Rp1,000 and banknotes from Rp1,000 to Rp100,000. Although Rp0.01 banknotes and Rp1 coins remain legal tender, they are no longer found in circulation and are valued above face value by collectors. With US $1 worth Rp16,614.000, as of 31 October 2025, the largest Indonesian banknote, worth Rp100,000 is worth about US $6.02.Coins
, two series of coins are circulating: aluminum, and nickel coins dated between 1999, 2003, and 2010, and a new series of coins featuring Indonesia's national heroes were issued in 2016. These come in denominations of Rp100, Rp200, Rp500, and Rp1,000. Coins in circulation are mostly Rp500 and Rp1,000, whereas the smaller-denominated coins are rarely used, except in shops whose pricing requires them.Banknotes
, circulating Indonesian banknotes date from 2000, 2001, 2004, 2005, 2009, 2010, 2011 and 2020. Notes issued in 1998–1999 ceased to be legal tender since 31 December 2008 and were exchangeable until 30 December 2018 at Bank Indonesia. Earlier notes are also no longer legal tender, due to the lack of security features and association with the Suharto regime, but could be exchanged in Bank Indonesia offices until 20 August 2010.As the smallest current note is worth approximately US$0.067, even small transactions such as bus fares are typically conducted with notes and the Rp1,000 coin is far more common than the Rp1,000 note. The government initially announced that this would change, with a Rp2,000 note to replace the Rp1,000, with that denomination fully replaced by the equivalent coin. After a long delay, this proposal was revised so that the Rp2,000 banknotes were launched by Bank Indonesia on 9 July 2009, with the banknotes circulating as legal tender from 10 July 2009, but without withdrawing the 1,000-rupiah note.
2016 series
Following the issuance of Presidential Decree No. 31 of 5 September 2016, BI introduced seven new banknote designs featuring national heroes:On 17 August 2020, Bank Indonesia officially introduced a Rp75,000 banknote to commemorate the 75th Independence Day of Indonesia. The note featured the proclamators of Indonesia's Independence, Sukarno and Mohammad Hatta. In 2022, the BI predicts that banknotes of this series will cease to be legal tender in 2025 or 2026, with all circulating 2016-series banknotes replaced by newer 2022-series banknotes.
2022 series
Bank Indonesia introduced a new family of banknotes on 18 August 2022. Officially they were retroactively issued as legal tender on 17 August 2022 to commemorate the 77th Independence Day of Indonesia. Similar to the 2016 series, the Indonesian dances and national heroes are still featured on the notes, with some notable changes.Security features
- The basic materials of the banknotes is cotton fiber, because it is more flexible and not easily ripped. However, the preferable material is abacá, which is naturally plentiful in Indonesia, especially in the Talaud Islands. and is believed to increase the durability of the banknotes. In 2014, Bank Indonesia planned to use this material, but in the 2016 series, decided to print using paper which was also used to print banknotes from previous editions.
- The minimum security features visible to the naked eye are watermarks, electrotypes and security threads with colour fibres. Extra features may be included, such as holograms, Irisafe, iridescent stripes, clear windows, metameric windows and gold patches.
- * Watermark and electrotype are made by controlling the gap of density of the fibres, which create certain images for the banknotes. This is done to raise the aesthetic quality of the notes.
- * Security threads are inserted into the note so that horizontal and vertical lines are shown from top to bottom. The threads can be varied in materials, size, colour and design.
- * Intaglio printing is used for the denomination numbers in the banknote, to help blind people recognise genuine notes and their denomination.
- The 2010 and 2011 revised-2004/2005 note series of Rp10,000, Rp20,000, Rp50,000 and Rp100,000 introduced several new security features: use of EURion constellation rings, rainbow printing designed to change colour when viewed from different angles and tactile features for blind people and those with visual difficulties to recognise the different denominations of the notes.
Digital rupiah
History
Historically, currencies of Indonesia have been influenced by the spread of Indian and Chinese cultures. During colonial times, the currency used in what is now Indonesia was the Netherlands Indies guilder. The country was invaded in 1942 by Japan, which began printing its own version of the guilder, which remained in use until March 1946. The Netherlands authorities and the Indonesian nationalists, who were fighting for independence, both introduced rival currencies in 1946 with the Dutch printing a new guilder, and the Indonesians issuing the first version of the rupiah on 3 October 1946. Between 1946 and 1950 a large number of currencies circulated in Indonesia, with the Japanese guilder still remaining prevalent alongside the two new currencies and various local variants. This situation ended when the federal government, now in complete control following the Dutch recognition of its independence, initiated currency reforms between 1950 and 1951. The rupiah was declared the sole legal currency, with other currencies being exchanged for rupiah at rates which were often unfavourable to the holders.Exchange rate and inflation
The rupiah has been subject to high inflation for most of its existence. Various attempts have been made to maintain the value of the currency, but all were abandoned.1946–1949 revolutionary period
From October 1946 to March 1950, the Indonesian currency had no international recognition. Its value was determined on the black market.1949–1965 foreign exchange restrictions
The exchange rate determined upon the international recognition of Indonesia's independence in 1949 was Rp3.8 to US$1. Lembaga Alat-Alat Pembayaran Luar Negeri Publication No. 26 on 11 March 1950 established the Foreign Exchange Certificate System. By the trade-in certificates an export rate of Rp7.6 and an import rate of Rp11.4 was established.The FECS was scrapped on 4 January 1952, by which time the government had been able to reduce its deficit by 5.3 billion rupiah through the exchange differential. The system was scrapped because domestic prices were being determined by the import rate, which were hurting profits from exports earned at the lower rate. Hence, the effective Rp7.6/11.4 exchange rate reverted to Rp3.8.
The ending of what amounted to an export tariff severely damaged government revenues, and as of 4 February 1952, the rupiah was officially devalued to Rp11.4, with export tariffs of 15–25% on commodities in which Indonesia was strong. Weaker commodities were not subject to tariffs, and from 1955 were actually given a premium of 5–25% to boost their export.
To control foreign exchange, the government brought in a number of measures. About 40% of the foreign-exchange requirements of importers were required to be paid to the government from April 1952, while as from September 1952, the government decided to provide only a limited amount of foreign exchange, made available every four months. These foreign-exchange restrictions, designed to provide the government with much-needed reserves, meant that some companies were operating at as low as 20% of capacity, due to lack of needed imported materials.
Further foreign-exchange restrictions were introduced over 1953–1954, with April 1953, the foreign-exchange downpayment was increased to 75%, except for raw materials at 50%. Foreign companies and their workers were placed under restrictions as to the amount of foreign exchange that could be sent home, with the amounts allowed out subject to fees of %. As of November 1954, exporters were required to sell 15% of their foreign exchange earned to the government.
An increasingly complex set of tariffs on imports was unified in September 1955 with a set of extra import duties, requiring down payments to the government of 50, 100, 200, or 400% of the value of the goods.
The official Rp11.4 rate, which massively overvalued the rupiah, was a major incentive to black-market traders, and also contributed to anti-Java feeling, given that those producing raw materials on the large material-rich outer islands were not receiving fair value from their goods due to the exchange rate, diverting funds to the government in Java. The black-market rate at the end of 1956 was Rp31 to US$1, falling to Rp49 at the end of 1957, and Rp90 by the end of 1958.
In response to Sumatra and Sulawesi refusing to hand over their foreign exchange, in June 1957, a new system for foreign exchange was introduced; exporters received export certificates representing the foreign currency earned and could sell them to importers on the free market. This effectively created a freely floating rupiah. The price of the certificates quickly reached 332% of face value by April 1958, i.e. Rp38, a rate at which the government chose to end the free market, fixing the price at 332% of face value.
The currency devaluation of large notes in 1959 had the official exchange rate devalued to Rp45 as of August 1959. Despite this, the fundamental issues with the fixed-exchange-rate system and severe import controls were not addressed, and smuggling grew, often backed by the army, while assets were moved offshore by over-invoicing.
The government maintained price controls over goods and raw materials, with the official oil price unchanged from 1950 to 1965.
After the 1959 devaluation, inflation, which had been running at 25% per annum 1953–1959, grew exponentially, with rates over 100% in 1962, 1963, and 1964, and 600% in 1965. Despite the official Rp45 to US$1 rate, two further export certificate trading systems, of March 1962 – May 1963, and then from April 1964 onwards, showed premiums of 2,678% July 1962, 5,100% August 1965 and 11,100% in November 1965.