PT ION Officially Established, Becomes 'Digital Public Infrastructure'

JAKARTA, Investortrust.id — PT Indonesia Open Network (ION) has officially been established as a company that will build digital public infrastructure to support the development of digital commerce, expand market access, and enhance the competitiveness of Indonesian micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs).

The establishment of PT ION was marked by the signing of the deed of establishment by its founders: Chief Executive Officer of PT Chairos International Ventures Sachin Gopalan, Chairman of Yayasan ION Teknologi Indonesia Ronald Walla, and Secretary of Yayasan ION Teknologi Indonesia Rudolf Saut Butarbutar at the APINDO Office, Jakarta, Friday (04/09/2026).

President Director of PT Indonesia Open Network Dr. Bayu Prawira Hie stated that the establishment of this legal entity marks an important milestone for the development of ION in Indonesia. The existence of the company is necessary because ION's various activities will involve commercial activities, business partnerships, investments, and technology development, thus requiring a clear and accountable legal entity.

"Today is the signing of the establishment of PT Indonesia Open Network. With the establishment of PT ION, we have a legal entity that can run various business activities while providing accountability to shareholders who invest to build Indonesia," Bayu said.

According to Bayu, PT ION has an authorized capital of Rp 10 billion with issued and paid-up capital of Rp 2.5 billion. The company issued 2,500,001 shares, consisting of 2.5 million Series A shares temporarily owned by PT Chairos International Ventures and one special share or golden share owned by Yayasan ION Teknologi Indonesia.

Bayu emphasized that the temporary status refers to the share ownership of PT Chairos, not to the legal status of the PT ION business entity. The 2.5 million shares are prepared to be transferred to new investors who wish to participate in building ION. Meanwhile, the golden share owned by the foundation functions to safeguard the company's direction, vision, and mission so that it remains oriented toward the public interest.

After obtaining legal status, PT ION will immediately build an organizational structure according to its needs, finalize various agreements with partners, and continue the pilot projects that were initiated before the company was officially established. The next stage is to accelerate the implementation of ION as digital infrastructure that can be used by business actors and the public.

To support its development, PT ION is targeting first-stage investment funding of around US$100 million. The funding is planned to come from at least 20 companies, with each contributing around US$5 million. This scheme is designed so that no single shareholder controls or dominates the company.

Bayu said the response from prospective partners and investors toward the ION concept has so far been very positive. ION is seen as a transformative solution for small and medium-sized business actors, especially in overcoming barriers to market access, technology, and marketing.

"We invite various parties to jointly build ION for the benefit of MSMEs and the progress of the Indonesian economy. This is not a startup built merely to seek the largest possible profit, but rather digital public infrastructure developed for the common good," he said.

Meanwhile, CEO of PT Chairos International Ventures Sachin Gopalan explained that PT ION was formed as an investment vehicle for various parties, both from Indonesia and abroad. Nonetheless, domestic investors will be the main focus because ION is designed as a strategic asset for Indonesia.

"ION will become public infrastructure that can be used by the public to conduct digital commerce, while also providing various tools so that Indonesian companies can enhance their digital capabilities," Sachin said.

PT ION's ownership structure, Sachin continued, will be built on the principle of dispersed and balanced shared ownership. No single party may be dominant because ION must remain open, independent infrastructure that provides the widest possible benefits to the public.

The composition of shareholders is also expected to represent diverse sectors, ranging from the government or state-owned enterprises, banking, and manufacturing, to technology companies. With cross-sector representation, ION is expected to develop as a national ecosystem and not be controlled by specific industry interests.

According to Sachin, several technology companies have shown interest in the development of the open network. Google, for example, has provided a grant of US$1.5 million to support the development of ION through an incubation program. The funding model utilizes a co-funding scheme, allowing global technology companies to collaborate with local partners and other parties who share a similar interest in building digital public infrastructure.

Similar open network concepts were previously developed in India under the name Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC). In addition to Indonesia, the digital open network model is also being prepared for development in Malaysia, Thailand, and Brazil.

Sachin explained that Yayasan ION Teknologi Indonesia does not function as an investment vehicle, but rather as a mission guardian for the company. This role is necessary to ensure that PT ION does not deviate from its initial purpose as a digital public infrastructure company.

"In a company with many shareholders, each party can bring their own interests. Therefore, there must be a neutral party to ensure PT ION remains within the established mandate. That is the role of Yayasan ION Teknologi Indonesia," he said.

In the initial stage, ION will focus on helping MSMEs gain market access and improve their digital commerce capabilities. In the long run, its infrastructure can also be used to develop applications and services for farmers, cooperatives, communities, and other economic sectors. Consumers also have the potential to obtain products and services at more competitive prices through a more efficient and open trade system.

Chairman of Yayasan ION Teknologi Indonesia and President Director of PT Wismilak Inti Makmur Tbk (WIIM) Ronald Walla welcomed the establishment of PT ION as an important step to formalize and expand the development of the ecosystem.

According to Ronald, ION has developed applications for buyers and sellers and has begun establishing collaborations with Indomaret and the Ministry of MSMEs. This infrastructure is expected to become an efficient tool to address one of the biggest challenges facing MSMEs: limited market access and marketing.

"If MSMEs grow, the industries and services supporting MSMEs will also grow. The impact can broaden from agriculture, industrialization, to the services sector. Therefore, we will continue to push ION to deliver tangible contributions for Indonesia," Ronald said.

Yayasan ION Teknologi Indonesia also welcomes opportunities for technology developers to join as stakeholders in the ION ecosystem. With support from cross-sector investors, tech companies, the government, and developer communities, ION is expected to evolve into sovereign, inclusive digital infrastructure capable of strengthening Indonesia's economic foundations.

Digital Democratization

Although PT ION was only legally formed on Friday (04/09/2026), the soft launching of ION was held on February 5, 2026. The initial launch of Indonesia's Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) for trade was led by Vice Minister of Communication and Digital Nezar Patria and attended by Minister of Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises Maman Abdurrahman. The event in early 2026 signaled government backing for the rollout of an open, inclusive digital commerce network that champions MSMEs.

ION is not a new marketplace competing head-to-head with e-commerce platforms like Tokopedia or Shopee. ION is an open network that enables buyer applications, seller applications, logistics providers, payment institutions, tech firms, and other ancillary services to interconnect. Through this system, businesses can utilize various applications to reach consumers without depending on a single closed digital ecosystem.

The presence of ION is seen as strategic for Indonesia, which has around 64.2 million MSMEs. The network is expected to help businesses reduce transaction costs, broaden market access, and secure easier access to payments, logistics, financing, and technology. At the same time, consumers stand to access a wider range of products and services at more competitive price points.

Indonesia-India Link

Political backing for ION strengthened when Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi made a state visit to Indonesia on July 7, 2026. During the bilateral meeting at Merdeka Palace, President Prabowo Subianto and PM Modi agreed to reinforce digital economic cooperation through DPI development. Both leaders also witnessed the signing of a memorandum of understanding on telecommunications technology and services cooperation, which formed one of 14 bilateral agreements between Indonesia and India.

In the official joint document outcome of the visit, the launch of ION was listed as one of the primary outcomes of the meeting. ION was stated to be built upon the architecture of the Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) developed in India. That statement affirmed backing from both governments while paving the way for the exchange of technology, knowledge, and experience in building an open digital commerce network.

President Director of PT ION Dr. Bayu Prawira Hie said the support from President Prabowo and PM Modi provides strong legitimacy for the development of ION. The endorsement from both heads of government demonstrates that ION is not merely a single corporate business initiative, but an integral part of the digital economic transformation agenda and the strengthening of the strategic Indonesia–India partnership.

ION adapts the experience of ONDC, which has grown into one of the largest digital public infrastructures in India. ONDC was established as a non-profit company on December 31, 2021, on the initiative of the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) under the Indian Ministry of Commerce and Industry. The network commenced pilot projects across several cities on April 29, 2022.

As an open network protocol, ONDC does not provide a single application. Its architecture allows diverse applications and service providers to communicate using common standards. A seller connected via one application can be discovered and transact with a buyer from another application. This model makes digital commerce more open while reducing business reliance on a single platform.

The development of ONDC illustrates the immense potential of the model. The network has reportedly booked more than 500 million transactions cumulatively, with an average monthly volume of around 12 million to 15 million orders. More than 760,000 sellers and service providers—spanning mom-and-pop grocery stores, restaurants, farmers, artisans, to MSMEs—have joined the network, which reaches over 1,200 cities and regions across India.

ONDC is also supported by multiple banks and financial institutions. As of July 2022, over 20 institutions had committed to investing 2.55 billion rupees, including HDFC Bank, UCO Bank, and Bank of Baroda. As many as 17 banks and financial institutions had previously provided first-stage funding of 1.575 billion rupees. The distributed ownership structure is designed to prevent any single company from dominating the network.

Beyond physical goods trade, ONDC is being expanded to cover mobility, travel, hospitality, agriculture, and financial services. Its integration with the account aggregator system is also expected to help MSMEs and supply chain participants secure formal financing based on their transaction history and data track records.

The open network model carries the spirit of democratizing digital trade. The goal is not merely to boost transaction numbers, but also to expand consumer choice, reduce merchant costs, foster healthier competition, and prevent the digital economy from being cornered by a handful of tech companies. The Indian government wants ONDC to birth many new digital business players, rather than simply inflating the valuations of a few trillion-dollar e-commerce companies.

The same spirit forms the foundation of ION's development in Indonesia. ION does not merely adapt ONDC technology; it also embraces the philosophy that digital infrastructure should serve as a shared public utility. With an open foundation, innovation can emerge from diverse players, and digital economic benefits can reach MSMEs, farmers, cooperatives, software developers, and the broader public.

The economic potential of this model is significant. McKinsey & Company estimates that open networks like ONDC have the potential to boost India’s digital consumption up to US$340 billion by 2030. If consistently developed with joint support from the government and the private sector, ION can help Indonesia build a digital economy that is not only larger, but also more inclusive, competitive, sovereign, and fair for millions of small business operators.

Advisory Council Member of ION and founder of India's ONDC, T. Koshy, revealed that shared infrastructure allows innovation to develop much faster because it is not confined to a single platform. "Shared infrastructure allows innovation to scale across the entire ecosystem, rather than being trapped within specific platforms," he said.

According to Koshy, backing from Google.org and various partners reflects surging confidence in the open digital infrastructure model as a driver of innovation, competitiveness, and economic growth.

In addition to building a national digital commerce network, Koshy noted, ION is developing the "ION Hyperlokal" program to strengthen community-based digital commerce.

This program will connect MSMEs, farmers, traditional markets, logistics providers, financial institutions, and community organizations into an integrated digital ecosystem. The initial implementation phase will be carried out across select regions, particularly rural areas.

"Through this program, business owners are expected to not only gain broader market access, but also more easily tap into digital payments, financing, insurance, and diverse business support services," Koshy explained.