Despite the growing acceptance of peer-to-peer payment technology bitcoin in Japan, the EU and the US, the use of bitcoin in Indonesia has yet to be regulated by Bank Indonesia (BI) and it is not recognized as a currency.CEO Bitcoin Indonesia Oscar Darmawan said he could understand the central bank’s reluctance to regulate the electronic money.“BI has provided room for bitcoin as a new technology to thrive before it decides to regulate it later,” he said on the sidelines of the ANZ Learning Fair 2016 in Jakarta on Tuesday.Meanwhile, Financial Services Authority (OJK) senior official for bank supervision Pardiyono cautioned would-be bitcoin users, underlining the need to understand fully the risks of the electronic money.Pardiyono said bitcoin, currently valued at Rp 6.1 million (US$458), might be too difficult for lay consumers to understand.“Consumers must take full responsibility for the use of bitcoin.No legal protection is in place right now,” he said.The ANZ Learning Fair 2016, being held from May 16-20, is designed to increase staff understanding of digital issues.

The fair is presenting a number of speakers including Teguh Ariwibowo, founder of crowd-lending firm pinjam.co.id; Mandy Marahimin, founder and CEO of crowd-funding firm Wujudkan; and Christian Sugiono, founder and CEO of MBDC Media.Indonesia, the fourth-largest country in the world by its population,  shows a rapid advancement of cryptocurrency-related technologies.BitBot, a new mobile application available for Android users, barges in as a new solution to make it easier for people to trade Bitcoin using indonesian fiat currency, the Rupiah.Though the crypto trading market in Indonesia is still not as big as in many western countries, the trading volume in Bitcoin is quite impressive.Hundreds of merchants have begun accepting payments in Bitcoin as well, especially in Bali due to the  existence of the Bitislands Project—an idea shared by the local community which aims to turn Bali into the world’s first Bitcoin island.Due to the volatility of the Bitcoin price, most Indonesian Bitcoin users are also traders seeking for profits from trading BTC.

BitBot, a new mobile application available for Android users, comes barging in as a new solution to make it easier for people to trade Bitcoin with Rupiah.block bitcoin ports“BitBot uses Bitcoin.co.id’s API, the biggest Bitcoin exchange in Indonesia with more than 145,000 members.litecoin hardware compare listWith BitBot Users can trade using two methods in the app: Order Book and Market Mode.bitcoin online or offline walletThrough Order Book, they can submit up to 10 buy/sell orders in the price they want with a custom price difference only with a single click.ethereum opportunityWhile in Market Mode, the app will automatically submit an order when the price reaches a specific price difference compared to the market they choose.bitcoin over nfc

There are 7 markets available in the app, including Huobi, BitStamp and ItBit.bitcoin faucet miningUsers can place orders based on the Bitcoin price in the foreign markets by using the funds they have in Bitcoin.co.id.BitBot aims to make it easier for Indonesian users to trade Bitcoin without having to continuously check the changes of price in foreign Bitcoin exchangers.It also comes with special alarms to notify you when the price increases or declines drastically in the market you choose.BitBot aims to attract more Indonesian Bitcoin users to trade Bitcoin more easily through their smartphones.This app can be downloaded for free on Google Play Store.News has emerged that a bitcoin exchange service has opened in Indonesia, the world's fourth-largest country by population – but one that hasn't appeared much on the bitcoin radar so far.Bitcoin.co.id joins other Indonesian bitcoin services such as artaBit and tuker.in.

However, according to user reports from Indonesia, these sites are still in development and not fully functional, open exchanges – users may buy and sell bitcoins, but exchange prices are fixed by the sites.Tuker.in also accepts litecoin.Local resident Ericson Pasaribu, who said he has used all three services without issue, said the 'exchanges' at this point worked more like money changers.They exchanged local currency (Rp, or Indonesian rupiah) for bitcoins but at a rate pegged to those of exchanges like Mt.Gox and Bitstamp, with an added premium.Bitcoin.co.id promised to buy bitcoins at  Rp 7,139,000 ($584.90) each or to sell them for Rp 8,166,700 ($669).Alongside these web-based services, LocalBitcoins is a popular choice among Indonesian bitcoin enthusiasts.Pasaribu noted that such services were a necessary stepping stone to promote bitcoin's use and increase the number of coins in circulation.Larger international exchanges like Mt.Gox were difficult to access from Indonesia, with new accounts taking months to verify, if at all.

There is a slight lag on bitcoin.co.id's processing time: within an hour during business hours Monday to Friday, but up to 12 hours outside that.This is apparently a precaution against overloading, since bitcoin supply is limited in Indonesia.Bitcoin.co.id founder and CEO Oscar Darmawan said bitcoin trade was still only about 5 BTC per day, but that there was a huge potential for growth with a large number of internet users in Indonesia."Currently in Indonesia bitcoin is not so popular yet.We are currently trying to make it into trend by providing many education and seminar about what bitcoin can do and the advantage of using bitcoin instead of our local currency," he said.Local miners were supplying bitcoins to the exchange, he added, with some of them producing 30 BTC a month.While that is still low compared to mining rates in other countries, he hoped a gathering of local miners in early 2014 would bring more online soon.Bitcoin.co.id would become a fully-fledged, open market exchange in future if circumstances allowed, Darmawan said.

"We are thinking to become a full open exchange in Indonesia but we are still monitoring the trend because the volume is not there yet  to make that plan possible.""People in seminars and education are interested in Bitcoin more for speculation currently, but in the very minimal amount.Some of them even buy only 0.01 - 0.005 (most of them).They try to buy because of media attention.We are trying to get some real investors in bitcoin by early next year as well."Indonesia has long been regarded a sleeping economic giant.It has a population of nearly 240 million people, many of whom suffer from limited access to traditional banking services.In September, Indonesia's National Banking Association (Perbanas) called Indonesia's banking industry "a failure”, citing that only 40% of the population had access to banking services.This stood in contrast to telecommunications, which had 102% penetration thanks to multiple SIM card ownership.This hasn't stopped Indonesia's banks from becoming some of the world's most profitable.

Yet, despite large-scale access to telecommunications, Indonesian society remains predominantly cash-based.ArtaBit's founder, Ayoub Naciri, has stated in a number of interviews that he sees bitcoin as a particularly useful tool in Southeast Asia for international remittances in the sub-$1,000 range.Customers currently pay a flat fee to companies like Western Union which can be as high as 30% on small transactions.The country is regarded as an 'emerging economy' and is a member of the Group of Twenty (G20) largest industrialized economies.Despite Indonesia and its currency, the rupiah, suffering big blows in the Asian Financial Crisis of the late 1990s, the economy has recovered since.In addition, it has managed to grow throughout the more recent Global Financial Crisis due to limited exports to the US and Europe.Indonesia's recent economic growth is also third highest in the G20, behind only India and China.87% of the country's population is Muslim, and there are frequent calls for Indonesia to follow the lead of neighbouring Malaysia and establish itself as a hub for Islamic banking and other financial services.