Jakarta, 15 February 2022 -- Metaverse becomes a new niche for the world economy to expand. Business people are competing to prepare strategies to optimize this niche to increase the added value of the digital economy. PT Bank Negara Indonesia (Persero), Tbk. (BNI) as a pioneer of digital Banking in Indonesia is also committed to helping build Metaverse Indonesia. Not only as a wave rider, BNI will build a relevant digital business ecosystem within Metaverse Indonesia which will also be introduced by President Jokowi at the G20 meeting where Indonesia is the Presidency.
Through the merger of Virtual Reality, Augmented Reality, and Artificial Intelligence, BNI in Metaverse Indonesia will provide a new experience for customers to enjoy digital Banking services. Like the nature of Metaverse which connects the real and virtual worlds immersively, BNI is also ready to provide attractive Banking services for customers.
BNI also cooperates with WIR Group to develop metaverse Banking services. This is the first step in BNI's journey to develop Banking services in a world that is more than just digital. The signing of the Metaverse Indonesia MoU between BNI and WIR Group was attended by BNI’s IT & Operations Director, Y.B. Hariantono and WIR Group CEO and Co-Founder, Michael Budi, Tuesday, (15/2/2022).
Y.B. Hariantono said WIR Group is the right partner for BNI's expansion in Metaverse because the company based on Augmented Reality (AR) technology has proven experience and has received recognition in various countries.
BNI appreciates WIR Group for its consistency in developing Metaverse. The company will certainly be more proactive in collaborating with more partners to jointly develop the metaverse in order to add value to BNI service product innovations in the future.
Y.B. Hariantono conveyed the company is the most aggressive state-owned Bank in developing the digital economy. For BNI, this new digital trend is not just to develop the concept of mobile Banking. Metaverse is actually a virtual world that will provide services that are different from the current digital Banking concept. “BNI has always been at the forefront of developing digital services. We are not only following the trend but also helping to build this Metaverse World in Indonesia. We will form a new business ecosystem in it, such as digital branches, digital products, new services, and engagement with customers who are attached to Metaverse," he said.
Y.B. Hariantono conveyed, in the Metaverse World, humans will enter a new world, where their five senses will feel a unique experience that is different from the physical world. This new world is no longer a place to communicate with strangers, not only in 2 Dimensions (2D) but in 3 Dimensions (3D). A replica of the real world that can take humans to various places without having to travel physically and without being limited by time.
In the current metaverse, it is not only limited to playing games, it can also be doing work, owning and selling an asset. Various economic transactions will begin to be created, now many people are investing such as buying property in Metaverse using money from the real world, there are also people who use their income from the Metaverse to shop in the real world.
Of course, economic activity will continue to increase, especially the metaverse will offer various virtual assets which are currently being traded a lot through the concept of non-fungible token (NFT). "If there is economic activity, it means that Banks can also come in to help both in terms of transactions, exchanges or even the essential business of Banking itself, namely raising funds and distributing credit in the Metaverse," he said.
Through collaboration with WIR Group, BNI also supports the creation of Metaverse Indonesia that can compete globally.
Y.B. Hariantono ensures that BNI also has strong enough capital to build a business ecosystem in the Metaverse.
"We need to make sure, as a digital Banking pioneer, BNI will also focus on developing digital talent that will support the future digital customer ecosystem, by improving the quality of digital Banking services that are more attractive and provide added value," he added.
Senior Executive Vice President of BNI's Digital Division, Rian Eriana Kaslan, added that BNI's steps in developing the metaverse are BNI's continued efforts to improve the customer's digital transaction experience. Moreover, the current Metaverse has become a trigger for changing digital habits to a more tangible experience. The experience is not only one-way, but it is a two-way and personal experience in a virtual world.
She conveyed BNI will also innovate the customer transaction experience, not only interacting with computers, but also BNI staff in the form of avatars. "We will also create our digital branch in Metaverse so that unique and different experiences can be felt. Our digital services will also be very personal and more real," she added.
Adding Benefits
On the occasion, WIR Group CEO and Co-Founder, Michael Budi welcomed BNI's expansive efforts to encourage increased adoption of the metaverse world, which has strong economic development potential. "We hope that this collaboration will benefit the Indonesian people and BNI customers to get more massive services," he said.
Michael explained that several sectors will join in the early stages of Metaverse development, such as digital tourism. The government can accommodate more travelers to visit Borobudur through Metaverse.
"This will also be a new space for learning. Because of the nature of the metaverse, which can give users a more real-time experience. Of course, there will be many new ways of learning that can be facilitated by the metaverse, such as anatomy that can be seen in three dimensions," he added.