By the Infobank Team
There is an old adage in the banking world: banking is an industry built on a foundation of trust. However, when that foundation is deliberately destroyed by irresponsible parties, and law enforcement agencies (APH) and the Financial Services Authority (OJK) instead punish those who were deceived, where exactly is the justice? This is the grim reality currently unfolding and affecting the directors of Regional Development Banks (BPDs)—namely Bank BJB, Bank DKI, and Bank Jateng—who have fallen victim to the financial statement fraud of PT Sri Rejeki Isman Tbk (Sritex).
The chronology of this case began with the granting of credit facilities by several BPDs—such as Bank BJB, Bank DKI, and Bank Jateng—to Sritex in September 2020. These credit decisions were certainly not made carelessly. There was a series of in-depth credit analyses, including the 5C, 3R, and 7P frameworks, conducted under sound governance. However, all these safeguards became ineffective when faced with a structured fraud scheme.
Shocking facts were revealed during the trial of defendant Babay Farid Wazdi at the Semarang District Court on March 5, 2026, and the trial of Yuddy Renaldi on March 11, 2026. Two key witnesses from within Sritex—Istanto Christian (Tax Manager) and Dwi Raharjo (Finance Staff)—clearly admitted in their Examination Reports (BAP) and before the court that audited financial statements had been manipulated.
Their confession was like a bomb going off in the courtroom. Sritex’s financial reports as of December 31, 2019, and 2020—which appeared healthy, profitable, and showing annual growth—turned out to be the result of a collaboration between certain members of Sritex’s management—at the behest of Chief Financial Officer Allan M. Severino—and the Public Accounting Firm (KAP) Tanubrata, Susanto, Fahmi Bambang & Partners, which is part of the international BDO network, one of the world’s 10 largest accounting firms.
A Reputable Accounting Firm, Falsified Reports, Zero Sanctions
So, the big question is: if those financial reports were the result of a joint scheme and have been acknowledged in the police investigation report, why are the bankers who fell victim to this fraud the ones being named as suspects and charged in court? Why have the main perpetrators from Sritex and KAP BDO—who fabricated those financial statements—remained untouched by the law and appear to be roaming freely?
What has the Financial Services Authority (OJK)—the agency overseeing the financial services industry, including the public accounting profession—done? A truly shocking fact is that to this day, the OJK has never once imposed sanctions on the accounting firm Tanubrata, Susanto, Fahmi Bambang & Partners (KAP BDO), even though the financial statements they audited and signed off on for Sritex have been proven to be fabricated and used to defraud 28 creditors, investors, and bondholders.
Audited financial statements published by a firm of BDO International’s caliber and uploaded to the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) are sacred documents in the financing process. Banks—in this case, the BPD directors—had already conducted due diligence in accordance with procedures. In fact, they even checked social media and found no records of any OJK sanctions against the BDO firm. Consequently, they assumed that the financial statements issued by this internationally reputable firm accurately reflected the company’s financial condition.
The OJK’s Betrayal of Bankers
The irony reaches a fever pitch when the OJK—which should serve as a bulwark of protection for the banking industry and bankers of integrity—actually does the opposite. Instead of imposing strict sanctions on BDO and Sritex, the OJK, through its expert witness, provided testimony that incriminated the directors of the regional development bank (BPD), claiming that the credit committee had failed to apply the principle of prudence.
A completely illogical statement. How can the principle of prudence be accused of not being applied, when all the documents used as the basis for decision-making were audited financial statements issued by an institution under its own supervision? These bankers have asked, “Are there any sanctions from the OJK against KAP BDO?” The answer is no. They have carried out all procedures in good faith and with the highest integrity, not even accepting a single rupiah in gratuities throughout the process.
Yet, the reward is that they are now branded as disgraced figures in the banking industry by the OJK. How heartless is an authority that sacrifices its own subordinates—who have become victims—while shirking responsibility for its oversight of KAP and Sritex, a public company that issued fictitious reports.
The Law Is Blunt Against the Powerful, Sharp Against the Weak
The public has the right to ask: What is going on with our law enforcement agencies? Why is the Attorney General’s Office (AGO) so eager to name the directors of BPD as suspects—a move some view as more “sensational” to present to the public as an institutional achievement—while the Sritex executives, aided by a public accountant who has admitted to his actions in the police interrogation report and during the trial, were actually released?
“Is this the cruelty and injustice being displayed by law enforcement agencies in Indonesia? Destroying our honor and self-respect in pursuit of institutional performance,” lamented a source who is one of the BPD officials implicated in this case.
This case has set a dangerous precedent for the national banking industry. If even audited financial statements from a world-class accounting firm can be manipulated without any sanctions from the OJK, what else can banks trust when extending credit? And if the bankers who are victims of this collective fraud are the ones punished, who else will dare to make business decisions?
The OJK’s accountability is absolutely essential. Not just statements, but concrete action. Where was their oversight of the Sritex issuer? Where was their oversight of the BDO accounting firm? Why did they allow their own bankers to become scapegoats for their own oversight failures?
The Sritex case is a reflection of just how skewed the legal system and oversight in this country can be. Those who fell victim to fraud and upheld their integrity ended up in the dock, while the fraudsters who confessed in court were able to smile with relief. Only God—and perhaps the angels—know who is the real fraudster, when even the authorities tasked with oversight allow it to happen.
