Binance is going to Indonesia to set up an exchange? Bloomberg: We are negotiating cooperation with the richest family

Cryptocurrency exchange Binance is reportedly seeking a partnership with Indonesia’s richest family, the Hartono family, whose brothers are the largest shareholders of Bank Central Asia (BCA), the country’s largest private bank.

Bloomberg News quoted people familiar with the matter on Friday as saying that Binance plans to set up a cryptocurrency exchange in Indonesia. The parties currently in talks include Bank Central Asia, controlled by Indonesian tycoon brothers Michael Bambang Hartono and Robert Budi Hartono, and Telkom Indonesia, Indonesia's largest state-owned telecommunications company.

According to reports, Bank Central Asia may establish a partnership with Binance through an affiliate. In response, a representative of Bank Central Asia told Bloomberg that a potential transaction with Binance has not been discussed at the board meeting.

On the other hand, a Binance spokesperson told CoinDesk that it is Binance’s policy not to comment on rumors or speculation. The spokesperson added: “We support the sustainable development of the global blockchain industry and we are always looking for business opportunities in every country.”

However, the Indonesian Islamic Religious Council (MUI) believes that cryptocurrencies are not halal (Haram) because of their uncertainty, gambling and harmfulness, which violates Islamic law (Sharia). It advocates that Muslims should be prohibited from using crypto assets as currency.

This could mean that if Binance eventually enters Indonesia, in the worst-case scenario, its target customer base will be limited to other Protestant, Catholic, Hindu, Buddhist, and, of course, wealthy Chinese Indonesians, who make up less than 5% of the country’s total population.