Indonesian Online Gambling Crackdown Cut Betting by 57%, Says Gov’t

Emma Bakker · 2025-12-23

The Indonesian government says its sweeping online gambling crackdown is yielding results, reducing the amount of money residents spend on illegal betting platforms by 57%.

The Indonesian media outlet Sin Po reported that the country’s Minister of Communication and Digital (Komdigi), Meutya Hafid, said that from the beginning of 2025 to the third quarter of the financial year, residents spent IDR 155 trillion ($9.2 billion) in online casinos.

That means that online gambling has more than halved since 2024, the minister said. She added that the “significant decline” was a “concrete result of the government’s commitment to protecting the public.”

The ministry also said there had been a “marked decline” of over 68% in the number of online gamblers.” In 2025, some 3.1 million gambled online. The figure in 2024 stood at 9.7 million, according to the government.

“This is a collective achievement by the government and the community,” the minister said. “And it demonstrates the government’s serious commitment to protecting the public, especially vulnerable groups, from the menaces of online gambling.”

Meutya said that the ministry took its data from the Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Center (PPATK), the country’s anti-money laundering agency.

“The PPATK data is highly credible,” she said. “It allows us access to tools that prove that the government’s policies on regulation, access control, and law enforcement are effective and measurable.”

Indonesian Online Gambling Crackdown Continues

Meutya said that the government will not rest on its laurels. Jakarta will continue to strengthen its crackdown on “all forms of online gambling practices,” she added.

She promised to hunt gambling operators and shut down their “digital infrastructure and financial flows.”

Meutya said that her ministry would continue to order IP providers to block access to online gambling sites and take down Indonesian social media posts that promote web-based casinos.

Komdigi operates a system that enables members of the public to submit anonymous reports when they encounter gambling-related websites or posts.

The minister said: “We promptly follow up on every public report. This is part of our commitment to maintaining a safe and healthy digital space.”

A ‘Significant Decrease’

The PPATK Head Ivan Yustiavandana confirmed that there had been a “significant decrease” in gambling since 2024, when cumulative volumes reached the IDR 359.8 trillion ($21.4 billion) mark.

Some have been critical of the ministry’s crackdown, however. Particularly controversial aspects of Jakarta’s campaign against gambling include the decision to halt benefits to low-income families where a member has placed bets online.

The PPATK runs a system that automatically orders local welfare bodies to cease payments to such families when it detects online casino-related activity in their bank accounts.

Banks have been ordered to comply with the crackdown. They must routinely check customers’ accounts for evidence of online gambling and report their findings to financial regulators.

Financial regulators have also frozen thousands of citizens’ bank accounts as part of the crackdown. They have confiscated funds from “habitual gamblers” and online casino operators alike.

All forms of gambling remain illegal in Indonesia.

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