Indonesia’s Central Bank has stated that Bitcoin (TIKER: BTC.EXANTE) represents neither a legal, nor recognized medium of exchange and payment in the country, The Merkle reported.
Indonesian payment platforms Toko Bitcoin and Bitbayar have been closed down to comply with Bank Indonesia (BI) announcement.
Bitbayerhas announced it will cease its services as of November 1st. Users are encouraged to withdraw all of their funds before the end of this month.
Additionally, Toko Bitcoin, which was popular for allowing customers to purchase electricity vouchers along with phone credits, has decided to stop accepting the digital currency as a means of payment.
Not long beforehand, the digital currency could be used as a method of payment as long as prices were denominated in Indonesia’s national currency, the rupiah.
Bank Indonesia announced back in 2014 that Bitcoin and other virtual currency were not valid currency or payment instruments in Indonesia. This statement was reinforced last month, when Bank of Indonesia’s Director of Payment System Policy Department, Eny V Panggabean, confirmed that the central bank would not recognize Bitcoin as a currency.