Herman, Jakarta – The central bank has issued a firm response after a viral social media video showed an elderly woman being denied the purchase of bread at a Roti'O outlet for attempting to pay in cash.
Bank Indonesia said the rupiah is legal tender across the country and must not be refused in payment transactions.
In the video, the woman is seen unable to buy bread because she did not have a digital payment application using QRIS, the national QR-based payment system issued by Bank Indonesia. A store attendant tells her the outlet does not accept cash and only processes payments via QRIS. A man later appears to assist by paying with his own mobile app.
Through its official Instagram account, Bank Indonesia criticized the rejection. Deputy Governor Filianingsih Hendarta said Indonesia's payment system provides two options – cash and non-cash – and that the choice should be adjusted to the convenience of consumers and merchants.
She stressed that QRIS functions only as a payment channel, while the currency used remains the rupiah.
"QRIS is merely a channel. The source of funds can be savings, e-money, or credit cards, but the currency used is still the rupiah," Filianingsih said.
She added that the use of the rupiah is mandatory for all payment transactions in Indonesia and that foreign currencies are not permitted.
Separately, Bank Indonesia's head of communications, Ramdan Denny Prakoso, said the obligation to accept rupiah is clearly stipulated under Article 33 paragraph (2) of Law No. 7/2011 on Currency. "Every person is prohibited from refusing the rupiah when it is offered as payment or to settle obligations in Indonesia," he said on Sunday.
Denny noted there is a single legal exception: merchants may refuse cash if there is a reasonable doubt about the authenticity of the banknotes.
He said that while both cash and non-cash payments such as QRIS are valid, digital payment adoption does not eliminate a merchant's obligation to accept cash, particularly for members of the public who rely on it.
Meanwhile, bakery chain Roti'O issued an apology for the incident and any inconvenience caused. The company said its use of non-cash payments aims to improve convenience and offer promotions, adding that it has conducted an internal evaluation to ensure better service going forward.