Denpasar, March 23, 2017 — The Task Force for Handling Alleged Unlawful Acts involving Public Funds Collection and Investment Management (the Investment Alert Task Force) urges the public to beware of the activities committed by UN Swissindo, which operates under the pretext of promising to repay one's loans. 

"UN Swissindo's operation has expanded to various areas, including Bali. So we hope the public will not be lured by their offers since their activities are illegal and do not comply with any loan repayment or financing mechanisms normally applied by banks and financing companies," Investment Alert Task Force Chairman Tongam L Tobing said at a press conference in Bali, on Wednesday (Mar. 22).

According to Tongam, UN Swissindo offered loan repayments by promising people that it would repay their loans/free them from their debts. It targeted those who had bad debts in banks, financing companies or other financial services companies. Its modus operandi was to issue guarantee letters/debt relief statements on behalf of the President and the State of the Republic of Indonesia as well as on behalf of international institutions from other countries. They provoked debtors not to pay their loans to creditors.

A.   Below are some of the methods that the company uses to offer its services:

1. Claiming that it acts on behalf of the state and/or certain state institutions on the grounds of people's sovereignty, which is established by Pancasila (the national ideology) and the 1945 Constitution;
2. Seeking victims who are trapped under bad debts and promising to settle their debts by putting up government bonds as collateral for their loans;
3. Asking victims to pay registration fees in order to join certain groups/legal entities;
4. Asking victims to find other bad debtors to join them.

B.   UN Swissindo's Operation Areas

According to data from the Investment Alert Task Force, UN Swissindo has operated all over Indonesia. The areas hit by the impacts of the company's activities included Jambi, Cirebon, Tasikmalaya, Purwokerto, Bengkulu, South Kalimantan, North Sumatra, Lampung, Riau Islands, Pekanbaru, East Kalimantan, Bali, Tegal, Cianjur, Bandung, and South Sulawesi.

The ones that felt the biggest impacts from UN Swissindo's activities are as follows:

1. Jambi                    = IDR 1.3 billion (11 customers)
2. Cirebon                  = IDR 4.02 billion (76 customers)
3. Purwokerto            = IDR 2.8 billion (25 customers)

C.   The Investment Alert Task Force has taken the following actions to deal with the UN Swissindo's activities:

1.    On August 26, 2016, together with the OJK, the National Police's Criminal Investigation Department (Bareskrim), the Ministry of Cooperatives and Small-Medium Enterprises of the Republic of Indonesia, and the Ministry of Communications and Information of the Republic of Indonesia, conducted a meeting to discuss the activities committed by UN Swissindo.

2.    On September 13, 2016, the Investment Alert Task Force submitted an Information Report to the Bareskrim about complaints against UN Swissindo's activities.

3.    On September 13, 2016, the Investment Alert Task Force sent a letter to UN Swissindo, asking it to stop its activities that urge customers not to repay their debts or installments to banks or financing companies. 

4.    On September 27, 2016, the Investment Alert Task Force sent a letter to the Bareskrim, to request the latter to summon or invite customers and ask confirmation from banks or financing companies that received letters/certificates of settlement from UN Swissindo.

5.    On February 17 and 22, 2017, the OJK, Bank Indonesia's Legal Department and representatives of six prime banks whose head offices are located in Jakarta, namely Bank Mandiri, Bank Negara Indonesia, Bank Rakyat Indonesia, Bank Central Asia, Bank Danamon Indonesia, and Bank CIMB Niaga, discussed about follow-up actions to address the activities committed by UN Swissindo. The discussions reached the following conclusions:

1. Bank Indonesia certificates (SBI) do not have any physical forms (paperless). Thus, the SBIs in UN Swissindo's hand are not instruments issued by Bank Indonesia. In other words, the company had created new, allegedly fake documents.  
2. The six prime banks, through representatives from their head offices in Jakarta, filed reports on cases that involved UN Swissindo and made them suffer losses

1. .

6.    On March 2, 2017, OJK investigators, in cooperation with the Bareskrim, conducted questioning and made six case reports in relation to activities committed by UN Swissindo, based on the complaints filed by 6 prime banks.

Further, the Investment Alert Task Force recommends the public to take the following precautions before investing their money :

1. Make sure the companies that offer investment products have business licenses from the competent authorities and the licenses are relevant to their business activities.
2. Make sure the parties who offer investment products have permits to do so or they are registered as marketing partners.
3. Make sure the companies or the parties only offer business investments that are in compliance with their licenses.

When the public find any suspicious investment offer, they should consult with, or report it to OJK Consumer Care by calling 1 500 655 or sending an email to konsumen@ojk.go.id or waspadainvestasi@ojk.go.id.

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For more information:

Tongam L. Tobing, Director of Policies and Investigation Support/Chairman of the Investment Alert Task Force

Tel +62 21 2960 0000, E-mail: tongam.tobing@ojk.go.id Website: www.ojk.go.id.