Bank Indonesia (BI) and the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to deepen cooperation on cross border payments made through QR (Quick Response) codes. BI Governor Destry Damayanti and HKMA Chief Executive Eddie Yue signed the agreement on September 24, 2026.
The two authorities said the aim is to make payments between Indonesia and Hong Kong quicker, cheaper, more transparent and more inclusive. Under the MoU, they will discuss the technical, operational and regulatory questions involved, and look at arrangements that would allow QR payment systems in the two places to work with each other. The agreement sets up a framework for talks rather than launching a service, and no timeline or participating institutions have been named.
It is the second payments agreement between the two authorities this year. In June, BI and the HKMA signed an MoU with the People’s Bank of China to set up a framework for the direct exchange and settlement of rupiah and offshore renminbi in trade and investment between Indonesia and Hong Kong.
Bank Indonesia: What It Means
Both sides bring experience of cross border QR links. Indonesia’s national QR standard, QRIS, is already connected with Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Japan, South Korea and China, while the HKMA launched a QR payment link with the Bank of Thailand in December 2023.
For travellers, a working link could mean fewer trips to the money changer and fewer card fees, with visitors able to pay using the banking or digital wallet apps they already have at home. Merchants on both sides could accept those payments through the QR codes they already display, without having to take on a new payment method. How much difference it makes, though, will depend on how many banks and wallet providers in each market choose to take part.
Digital Trade Outlook: What stands out is that this is the second agreement between BI and the HKMA in just over three months, following June’s framework for settling trade in rupiah and offshore renminbi. Taken together, the two cover both ends of the relationship, from corporate trade to everyday retail spending, and suggest Hong Kong is becoming a key payments partner for Indonesia.
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