Danantara, Indonesia’s newly established sovereign wealth fund, is considering plans to form a national asset management company by consolidating units from some of the country’s largest state-owned banks, according to Bloomberg, citing people familiar with the matter.
The proposal would bring together the asset management divisions of PT Bank Rakyat Indonesia (BRI), PT Bank Mandiri, and PT Bank Negara Indonesia (BNI) under a new entity, as Danantara seeks to expand its presence in the domestic and regional asset management industry. The fund is reportedly looking to hire advisers to assist in structuring the merger, which could later include other state banks’ asset management units as well.
Combined, the asset management arms of BRI, Mandiri, and BNI held nearly $8 billion in assets earlier this year, based on data from the banks’ latest statements.
Discussions are ongoing, and a deal could be finalized as soon as the first quarter of next year, one source told Bloomberg. However, no final decision has been made. Key hurdles include securing approval from minority shareholders and negotiating fair valuations and distribution agreements for the affected businesses.
Danantara, which reports directly to President Prabowo Subianto, was launched earlier this year to oversee Indonesia’s network of state-owned enterprises (SOEs), reinvest their dividends, and attract external capital for nationally strategic projects.
The fund has already announced plans to raise as much as $3.1 billion from so-called “Patriot” investors through bond issuance, and expects to deploy part of its capital — sourced from SOE dividends and bond proceeds — into infrastructure, equity, and bond market investments in the coming months.
With assets valued at around $1 trillion, Danantara ranks among the world’s largest sovereign wealth funds by portfolio size, holding stakes across key sectors including energy, finance, and infrastructure. The initiative is a cornerstone of President Prabowo’s agenda to revive Indonesia’s economic growth to levels last seen in the 1990s.
