Boasting 40 meetups a month and a broad estimated group of 55,000 bitcoiners, the Bitcoin Indonesia ecosystem is likely to be one of the energetic and profitable Bitcoin adoption tales on this planet at present.
Indonesia is a nation made up of 17,000 islands with over 380 totally different tribes and cultures. The nation, situated between Australia and China, has a inhabitants of over 280 million individuals, which has been ravaged by inflation and financial repression, seeing the Rupiah collaps 61% since over the previous 30 years versus the greenback. Consequently, its inhabitants is keenly conscious of the issues with fiat forex and infrequently open to options, fertile floor for Bitcoin adoption.
As we speak, the Bitcoin Indonesia circular economy has a number of ongoing schooling and adoption efforts throughout the nation. In response to Dimas, a former supplies science engineer turned Bitcoin evangelist and one of many founders of Bitcoin Indonesia, there are roughly 55,000 people partaking with Bitcoin in a method or one other via their efforts. The 40 meetups a month are hosted throughout 40 totally different cities all through the nation, with Fedi, Blink, and Wallet of Satoshi as fashionable wallets. Bitcoin Indonesia’s Fedimint Federation — a Bitcoin ecash funds infrastructure — is estimated to have between 10,000 and 20,000 members, although particular numbers will not be accessible given ecash’s strong privacy properties.
They’ve over 3,600 members in Telegram, over 27,000 on Instagram, and over 10,000 on TikTok, social platforms via which they distribute Bitcoin schooling content material in a mixture of Bahasa Indonesia and English to the native inhabitants. They’re additionally one of many largest My First Bitcoin nodes, having graduated 500 students by 2025 of the Bitcoin certification and schooling program initially born in El Salvador. They purpose to double the variety of graduates by the top of 2026.
Surviving a Authorities Ban
Whereas Bitcoin Indonesia’s success is spectacular, it isn’t the primary time Bitcoin adoption has swelled within the nation. Again in 2014, there was a Bitcoin adoption initiative that received some worldwide consideration known as the Bitcoin island, which targeted totally on the gorgeous vacationer island of Bali. The initiative noticed as few as 42 retailers accepting bitcoin as much as ‘hundreads’ in accordance with Dimas, together with the acquisition of a high-profile luxury villa with bitcoin, value $500,000 on the time or 800 BTC.
The momentum and adoption will need to have been sturdy as a result of the Indonesian authorities responded to it, however not effectively. In 2017, the federal government unleashed a crackdown on various currencies within the nation by the Financial institution of Indonesia, which issued a Regulation banning cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin as fee devices, efficient January 2018. It didn’t simply goal cryptocurrencies but in addition international fiat currencies just like the greenback or euros for funds. The BI cited dangers to monetary stability, cash laundering, and volatility, guaranteeing in flip the continued impoverishment of its inhabitants beneath a collapsing Ruphia. The crackdown was no paper tiger both; companies promoting various currencies like Bitcoin noticed undercover probes result in store closures beneath the specter of arrest and even jail time for operators.
The crackdown coincided with the 2017 bitcoin bull market as effectively, which noticed on-chain charges go as excessive as $50 {dollars}, an financial occasion in Bitcoin which shook the trade and led to the event of the Lightning Community, designed for high-speed, low-cost funds and which is used at present all through Bitcoin Round Economies. Consequently, nevertheless, adoption quieted down for years on this asian nation of islands, till after COVID hit, when the founders of the Bitcoin Indonesia group considered a brand new option to spur bitcoin adoption within the nation.
Motivated by the post-COVID political and financial disaster, in addition to the meteoric rise of bitcoin from a low of $4,000 to as excessive as $70,000, a small group of Indonesian Bitcoiners kickstarted the native Bitcoin group once more, utilizing a brand new authorized technique that had protected bank cards and airmiles rewards packages from the 2018 authorized restrictions. Seems in case your fee system is a “closed loop” then you aren’t a ‘forex’. Bitcoin possession was nonetheless authorized as a retailer of worth; it was solely the medium of alternate utilization that was restricted. But when as a substitute of shopping for one thing with bitcoin you’re redeeming bitcoin for a services or products, then it’s, legally talking, a good recreation. This loophole, which protects the native banks and different main legacy monetary gamers, additionally gave cowl to Bitcoin.
Right here’s Fedi came in to provide infrastructure, resulting in an actively used Bitcoin ecash mint, estimated to have 10,000 to twenty,000 members. In Bitcoin Indonesia, individuals don’t spend bitcoin; they redeem it in shops which can be members of the community, protecting using bitcoin legally compliant with the native legal guidelines, whereas unlocking service provider adoption.
With the authorized technique sorted out, it was a matter of reactivating the community of Bitcoin OGs within the nation, many doubtless created in that 2014 period of “The Bitcoin Island” in Bali. One second particularly stood out to Dimas, trying again on the bootstrap section of the group. He reached out to a neighborhood “Bitcoin whale” and talked about he wished to begin a neighborhood My First Bitcoin node. Quickly sufficient, the whale received again to him and provided a business location at a close-by mall to host the occasions; “owned by a son-in-law,” he stated, “you should use it at no cost”. Shocked, Dimas requested, “Does he personal the shop or one thing?” The whale stated, “No, he owns the mall”. An instance, Dimas says that “something can occur in Bitcoin”. This identical initiative ultimately led to the five hundred college students graduating from the My First Bitcoin program in 2025.
Pillars of a Profitable Bitcoin Meetup
Leveraging his expertise within the broader crypto trade, internet hosting schooling occasions for exchanges like Tokocrypto in 2021, Dimas and the local people additionally began internet hosting Bitcoin meetups. Not like a lot of the competitors within the nation on the time, these academic occasions have been free somewhat than costing attendees tons of of {dollars} to entry. Ultimately, Bitcoin Indonesia developed a template for creating profitable Bitcoin meetups, which they printed as a guide on GitHub for free.
The principle pillars of a profitable meetup, in accordance with Dimas and the Bitcoin Indonesia group, are:
- Be a real Bitcoiner with stable data.
“First, you need to be a Bitcoiner. You need to know sufficient about Bitcoin.” Dimas defined. The chief will need to have an actual understanding to coach and encourage others authentically.
- Be keen to change into a long-term group chief.
“Second, you’re keen to change into a pacesetter, which signifies that you need to have the ability to broaden. Handle your group, and make it larger. You don’t simply run meet up and that’s it. You need to change into like a job determine in your space.”
Success requires ongoing dedication past one occasion. It means being publicly seen, constructing, rising, and proudly owning the native Bitcoin presence.
- Present free branding and supplies (with reimbursement).
“We offer the leaders with the flag, with the books, flyers, stickers, banners, and all the things. In order that they print it themselves, after which we simply reimburse them.”Advertising and marketing and infrastructure help, like flags, books, flyers, and so forth, make the occasion look skilled and constant, whereas reimbursement retains the chief motivated. Ultimately, donations can help rising meetups.
- Preserve it utterly free for attendees.
“Our model is free, free meetup, free schooling.”Charging for schooling, like competing crypto academies that cost $1,000–$2,000, creates expectations of fast returns and infrequently results in disappointment or scams. Free entry builds belief and fast progress.
- Give attention to Bitcoin and monetary literacy.
“We attempt to train that Bitcoin is a software that may actually empower you. That’s Bitcoin for everybody. First, what’s cash? After which what’s the historical past of the Indonesian Rupiah? Why are you feeling so poor? And the way Bitcoin may be one of many instruments that may assist individuals to realize true monetary freedom.”By instructing individuals monetary literacy, they change into inoculated in opposition to Ponzi schemes and different crypto scams, which have ravaged the nation and seeded broad skepticism within the public in direction of this trade. Educating individuals concerning the historical past of cash and particularly their native forex helps them perceive why Bitcoin might help them rise and break the cycle of fiat collapse.
The Bitcoin Indonesia round economic system has been supported by HRF, OpenSats, Block.xyz, and Mike Peterson of Bitcoin Seaside fame.
