TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Chief Commissioner of the Financial Service Authority (OJK) Wimboh Santoso compared the emergence of financial technology (fintech) or peer-to-peer lending with the loan shark practices in the community. According to Wimboh, many people benefit from the two financial services despite many of them fell victims.

“Overall, fintech has many advantages similar to loan sharks, and we find difficulties to close it because many people earn benefits from it, particularly those in [outskirts] regions,” said Wimboh in Bank Indonesia building, Jakarta, Tuesday, July 30.

He attributed the rampant practice of loan sharks or locally known rentenir to lack of formal banks as they refused to enter certain regions because of high risk and small revenue.

Based on the institution’s study, many housewives in traditional markets got easy loans without requirements. This similar practice adopted by fintech considering many people had no assurance needed for a loan.

Therefore, Wimboh said that his institution could not prohibit fintech services. “We cannot ban it, as we do to loan sharks. We can only appeal to fintech to refrain from becoming an online loan shark,” he underlined.

He also called on the public to always opt registered fintech application, so OJK could monitor the app’s activity to prevent a violation.

CAESAR AKBAR