LinkAja – The first and only e-money in Indonesia with Shariah feature

This article is produced and sponsored by LinkAja. It was first published in the State of the Global Islamic Economy 2020/21 report produced by DinarStandard and supported by the Dubai Islamic Economy Development Centre. The report can be downloaded from here. 

LinkAja, a digital payment service owned by ten influential Indonesian State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs), embraced its business journey in Indonesia, the country with the largest Muslim population globally, as the first and only e-money with a Shariah feature certified by the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI).

The Shariah feature of LinkAja comes as a strategic step in achieving the Indonesian Government’s goal of becoming the world’s Islamic economy hub by 2024. LinkAja is expected to play a critical role in the Islamic Economic Masterplan carried out by the National Islamic Economics & Finance Committee (KNEKS).

During the commemoration of the Islamic New Year 1 Muharram 1442 Hijri Celebration with KNEKS and LinkAja, the Vice President of the Republic of Indonesia, Ma’ruf Amin, mentioned that “The government appreciates LinkAja’s efforts in inviting various parties to jointly build Indonesia’s Shariah ecosystem. The synergy of various cross-sector parties is undoubtedly vital in the development of infrastructure facilities that can expand and strengthen the Shariah ecosystem in Indonesia.”

The Shariah feature of LinkAja is made available in a Shariah specific ecosystem across 88 municipalities and 383 districts throughout Indonesia. LinkAja users can utilize its Shariah feature in mosques, zakat institutions, halal online and offline merchants, modern national and local retailers, Islamic boarding schools, Shariah banks, Islamic schools, Islamic universities, and others. LinkAja has also enabled its Shariah e-wallet for other essential services, such as prepaid telecommunication top-up, utility bill payments, e-commerce, public transportation including trains, buses, taxis, and ride-hailing apps, such as Gojek and Grab.

LinkAja has a Shariah Supervisory Board that monitors and ensures all activities align with Shariah-compliant rules, namely the placement of funds in cooperation with numerous Shariah banks, applying transaction procedures following Shariah rules, and acceptance points across LinkAja merchants.

Today, LinkAja’s Shariah feature has more than 1,000,000 registered users. The company is committed to scaling up with its strategic partners, such as local governments and other institutions, to expand Indonesia’s digital Shariah ecosystem.

© State of the Global Islamic Economy 2020/21 All Rights Reserved

This article is produced and sponsored by LinkAja. It was first published in the State of the Global Islamic Economy 2020/21 report produced by DinarStandard and supported by the Dubai Islamic Economy Development Centre. The report can be downloaded from here.