Indonesia names Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa as new finance minister after Sri Mulyani removed

JAKARTA: Indonesia's well-regarded finance minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati was removed from her position on Monday as part of a broader cabinet reshuffle, with the president appointing an economist to replace her.

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Sri Mulyani, Indonesia's long-serving finance minister, was replaced by Purbaya Sadewa, head of the Deposit Insurance Corporation.
Her departure follows weeks of unrest and calls for tax reform; markets reacted with a drop in stocks and a flat rupiah.
Purbaya brings economic expertise and government experience, taking over during a politically tense period.

State secretariat minister Prasetyo Hadi announced Sri Mulyani's departure shortly before President Prabowo Subianto swore in Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa as her replacement.

Purbaya has been head of the Indonesia Deposit Insurance Corporation since 2020. Prior to that, he served in various roles at several ministries, including deputy minister at the maritime and investment ministry.

Sri Mulyani was one of Indonesia's longest-serving finance ministers and had worked under three presidents. She won plaudits for reforming the taxation system and for her role in steering Southeast Asia's largest economy through several crises, including the pandemic and the global financial crisis.

In between her first and second stints as finance minister, she served as a managing director of the World Bank.

The main stock index .JKSE erased earlier gains to trade 1.3% down. The rupiah IDR= was little changed after the announcement, having been up around 0.7% against the dollar during the day.

The announcement came after two weeks of protests and unrest across the country, which have included calls for a fairer taxation system.

During some of the protests in late August, looters broke into Sri Mulyani's home.

Purbaya, who has master's and doctoral degrees in economics from Purdue University, has also served as chief executive of state-owned brokerage Danareksa Securities.