Banks Can Buy Securities Like Bonds As Bank Financing Elements.

Jakarta - Bank Indonesia (BI) has issued a policy of Macroprudential Intermediation Ratio (RIM) aimed at encouraging the banking intermediation function to the real sector in accordance with the capacity and target of economic growth while maintaining the prudent principle.

Assistant Governor Head of Macroprudential Policy Department BI, Filianingsih Hendarta said, with the provisions of this RIM, the banks can buy Securities (SSB) such as bonds as elements of bank financing. This is also to support the banking credit distribution.

In fact, through this policy, BI also frees and does not restrict banks to buy Securities. So far, Fili said, the ownership of Securities by banks has only reached 0.99 percent or Rp46 trillion of the total banking loan portfolio, which is around Rp4,600 trillion. Thus, the Bank can buy as many bonds as possible.

"RIM to push the banking intermediation function into the real sector. securities that may be included only securities issued by the corporation. We have not limited the bank to the share of Securities purchases. But there is a criterion for banks such as from the rating side, "he said in Building BI, Jakarta, Thursday, April 5, 2018.

Nevertheless, with the purchase of Securities regulation included as a financing element, he said, the Central Bank ensures that the policy will not significantly reduce the amount of credit disbursed by banks to customers, because the portion of bond holdings in banks is still very small.

However, he continued, BI did not rule out limiting the portion of the purchase of Securities by banks, if the bank really relies on the Securities as the support of credit distribution or the portion of the purchase of Securities to total loans in RIM instruments already rival the credit portion.

"Securities return how much, what credit returns. Banks will not sit around to buy securities only. Everyone will search higher. Now it has not been limited how many may buy. We have not seen a large percentage. But we'll see again, "he explained.

In the published provisions, RIM stipulates with a target range of 80-92 percent for both Conventional Commercial Bank (BUK), Sharia (Islamic) Commercial Bank, Sharia Business Unit (UUS), and expanding financing components that include Securities purchased by BUK, BUS, and UUS, and expand the deposit component by entering the SSB issued by BUS and UUS.

"There are banks that do not meet the lower limit of 80 percent. There are 78 percent we increase to 80 percent. We've tried to improve. There are some banks have not fulfilled 80 percent because the credit has not been met. Maybe it can be filled with securities, yet the result is the same, "he added.

The RIM Policy and Macroprudential Liquidity Buffer (PLM) for conventional banks has been known before through the GWM Loan to Funding Ratio (LFR) and Secondary Statutory Reserves which are part of the GWM policy. As for sharia banks, RIM Syariah policy has been applied in the form of financing ratio to third party funds which is also part of GWM policy. (*)