Jakarta – The turnover of online gambling transactions in Indonesia continues to increase sharply, even estimated to reach IDR 1,200 trillion in 2025. This figure is almost equivalent to half of the total State Budget (APBN), triggering concerns about the broad economic and social impacts.
Head of the Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Center (PPATK), Ivan Yustiavandana, revealed that his party recorded a drastic spike from the previous year, where online gambling transactions reached IDR 981 trillion in 2024. PPATK assessed that cross-sector collaboration is very necessary to suppress the movement of online gambling.
“Cross-party collaboration has succeeded in uncovering and prosecuting large-scale online gambling networks,” he said.
Member of Commission III of the Indonesian House of Representatives from the PKB Faction, Hasbiallah Ilyas, called this situation a serious danger signal. He warned that without firm steps, the country’s wealth could run out in the next five years.
“What the PPATK Chairman revealed about the turnover of judol funds this year, which reached Rp1,200 trillion, is very disturbing,” said Hasbiallah.
Haidar Alwi Institute (HAI) founder R. Haidar Alwi appreciates the steps taken by the National Police in eradicating online gambling. Throughout 2024, the National Police uncovered 1,611 cases, arrested 1,918 suspects, and proposed blocking 126,448 online gambling sites.
“The success of the Police in enforcing norms in the judol case deserves a thumbs up,” said Haidar.
However, Haidar emphasized that eradicating online gambling is not only the task of law enforcement. The involvement of the community, religious leaders, community leaders, and the world of education to jointly combat the increasingly worrying practice of online gambling.
“Eradicating online gambling is the responsibility of all parties,” he stressed.
The government continues to strengthen online gambling handling measures through various integrated strategies. One of the main efforts is blocking more than 800 thousand online gambling sites that are considered disturbing to the public. However, the challenge is getting bigger because the number of online gamblers is estimated to reach 8.8 million people, the majority of whom come from the lower middle class.
In addition, the government is working with various digital platforms to narrow the scope for online gambling actors. Another step that has been taken is to strengthen education to the public about the dangers of online gambling, especially among the younger generation. The government is also encouraging cross-sector collaboration, including with financial institutions and community groups, to create a safer ecosystem from the threat of online gambling.
