Bank Rakyat Indonesia

Bank Rakyat Indonesia

Bank Rakyat Indonesia (BRI) is a bank in Indonesia that is 70% owned by the government. This bank has been government-owned since Indonesia's war of independence from 1945 to 1949, and it was first established in 1895 as the "Aid and Savings Bank for Local Civil Servants" during the colonial period. Over the years, the bank underwent several name changes before becoming the "People's General Credit Bank" in 1934. During World War II, the bank's operations were impacted by the Japanese occupation, and after Indonesia declared independence in 1945, the bank was nationalized by the new government and renamed "Bank Rakyat Indonesia Serikat."

The bank's structure largely followed government policies under President Sukarno and President Suharto, moving rapidly towards socialism and then state authoritarianism. In 1992, the bank gained its current name and status. During the East Asian financial crisis of 1997, BRI was largely unaffected as it had limited lending in foreign currencies or to large corporations borrowing heavily overseas, unlike most other Indonesian banks. Since then, BRI has focused on increasing its core business and improving risk management practices. The government has reduced its influence on the bank's day-to-day operations, culminating in an IPO in 2003, and BRI is working towards complying with Basel II accords mandated by Bank Indonesia by 2008.