Bank Rakyat Indonesia Unleashes BRImo App in Taipei to Capture Lucrative Migrant Remittance Boom

TAIPEI, Investortrust.id — State-owned banking giant PT Bank Rakyat Indonesia (Persero) Tbk (BBRI) is accelerating its offshore digital expansion, rolling out its signature mobile banking platform BRImo in Taiwan to capture an expanding volume of cross-border retail remittances.

The launch delivers a digital lifeline to the hundreds of thousands of Indonesian migrant workers living and working across the island, providing seamless round-the-clock wire transfers directly back to their home banking accounts.

For BBRI—Indonesia’s dominant state lender focused on retail and micro-enterprises—capturing the high-margin migrant remittance corridor in key East Asian economies is a crucial growth engine.

Cross-border worker flows represent a multi-billion-dollar fee-income pipeline, and transitioning migrant communities from costly third-party remittance shops to proprietary mobile ecosystems locks in low-cost CASA deposits and boosts non-interest revenue.

Unlocking Round-the-Clock Digital Remittances

Speaking before a massive gathering of Indonesian diaspora members and corporate leaders in Taipei on Sunday, Aug. 23, 2026, BRI President Director Hery Gunardi emphasized that the app bridges a major operational gap for workers who cannot visit physical bank counters during standard business hours.

"BRImo Taipei delivers unmatched convenience, enabling our community to execute transactions—especially money transfers—24 hours a day," Gunardi said on Sunday during the launch ceremony.

Gunardi underscored that digital banking removes the friction of conventional brick-and-mortar branches, operating 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and 365 days a year without restriction.

The app rollout builds upon BRI’s existing brick-and-mortar footprint in the city, positioning the state lender to serve both institutional trade finance and grassroots diaspora savings through a unified omni-channel ecosystem.

Star Power Fuels Diaspora Adoption

To catalyze app downloads and drive brand engagement, BRI transformed the Taipei launch into a major cultural festival, flying in celebrated Indonesian pop artist Wika Salim and iconic pop-rock outfit Sheila on 7.

Gunardi actively engaged the audience during his remarks, polling thousands of attendees on which top-tier Indonesian musical acts—such as Slank, Dewa 19, Gigi, or Wali—they would like to see at next year’s annual diaspora gathering.

The launch event drew high-level diplomatic and institutional backing, with BRI Independent Commissioner Eddy Susianto and Indonesian Economic and Trade Office (IETO) Taipei Head Arief Sulistio joining the stage alongside New Taipei City government representatives, BRI’s Board of Directors, and the General Manager of BRI Taipei.

Scaling Beyond Physical Branches

Gunardi emphasized that the digital launch marks a strategic departure from relying strictly on brick-and-mortar locations. With hundreds of thousands of Indonesian workers scattered beyond Taipei into central and southern Taiwan, digital access eliminates geographic barriers and travel costs.

"Our presence in Taiwan is not merely about opening an office or introducing a digital app," Gunardi said at New Taipei City Hall on Sunday. "It is about being closer to the Indonesian community building their futures here. We want BRI to serve as the financial bridge connecting their hard work in Taiwan directly with their families and financial needs back home."

A $408 Million Footprint and a $3 Billion Inflow

The app rollout builds on rapid growth at the lender's full-service branch in Taipei's Zhongshan District, where total assets have surpassed $408 million. By the end of July 2026, the branch had processed approximately $490 million in bilateral remittance volume across more than 3,400 active accounts.

The commercial upside is underpinned by substantial macro inflows. Citing central bank data, BRI noted that annual remittances from Indonesian migrant workers in Taiwan reached approximately $2.97 billion (around Rp 47.5 trillion) in 2025—more than doubling from $1.37 billion in 2021.

Capturing the Broader Diaspora Wealth Corridor

Beyond peer-to-peer transfers, BRI is leveraging its local banking license—regulated locally by Taiwan’s Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) and Central Deposit Insurance Corporation (CDIC)—to scale higher-margin corporate lending, commercial deposits, and wealth management services.

With an estimated 400,000 Indonesian nationals in Taiwan, including students, white-collar professionals, and maritime workers, Gunardi noted that the digital platform is designed to transition unbanked migrant earnings into long-term savings, insurance, and productive investment assets back home.