📰 Weekly Roundup (10-16 Feb 2026): Indonesia’s Fight Against the Tide | The Media Machine | Navigating Indonesia’s Blurred Lines by Richard Borsuk | Vietnam’s Green Shoots | Bright Spot #15
Weekly newsletter
Dear Valued Contacts,
I’d like to wish Happy Chinese New Year to those who celebrate it. May you have lots of blessings in the Year of the Horse!
📒 Quick Take: Indonesia’s Fight Against the Tide (11 Feb 2026)
Rather than paying heed to a growing chorus of warnings, Indonesia’s policymakers seem to be digging their heels in.
After Moody’s cut its outlook to negative, local rating agency PEFINDO also said that the Indonesian government should work towards restoring investors’ confidence. FTSE Russell is postponing its March review, which came after another index compiler, MSCI, flagged that it may reclassify Indonesia to frontier market status.
President Prabowo Subianto was angered by the recent market rout and will “very tightly monitor”, local media quoted his brother, Hashim Djojohadikusumo, as saying last week.
💼 Brief Take: The Media Machine (9 Feb 2026)
An international news agency ran an exclusive story last year that Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati only got an hour’s notice of sacking. In reality, investigative news agency Tempo reported that the former World Bank managing director tried to resign after her home was looted, but the president refused to accept her resignation.
🤝🏻 Guest Take: Navigating Indonesia’s Blurred Lines by Richard Borsuk (13 Feb 2026)
I’ve republished my Q&A with Richard Borsuk – the co-author of Liem Sioe Liong’s Salim Group: The Business Pillar of Suharto’s Indonesia – because I think his advice on navigating Indonesia is evergreen and more people should benefit from reading it. Rick and Nancy Chng’s highly-acclaimed biography of Salim Group’s late founder is regarded as one of the best books on Indonesia’s modern history.
📒 Quick Take: Vietnam’s Green Shoots (12 Feb 2026)
I wrote that Vietnam is attracting some of the stickier investments that its Southeast Asian neighbour, Indonesia, has been trying to win over. To accelerate growth, Vietnam’s leaders have shown a willingness to listen to investors’ feedback and adapt lessons from other countries, such as in developing its judicial infrastructure.
👉🏻 Do check out the key takeaways from the Asia Pacific Loan Market Association (APLMA)’s Vietnam Loan Market Conference 2026.
☀️ Bright Spot #15 (13 Feb 2026)
Singapore’s economic growth has defied expectations for two consecutive years, while the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) is streamlining administrative procedures for offshore loans. Among the key changes, no SBV registration would be needed for enforcement-based repayments, according to a note written by Baker McKenzie.
In the latest On the Move, Alvarez & Marsal has appointed Maggie Cui as a Managing Director in Shanghai, while DLA Piper hired Sherlyn Lau as its Head of Capital Markets and Corporate Finance for APAC.
Acrostics Asia’s publishing cadence will likely drop during the CNY week and should resume next week.
Have a good week ahead!
Best,
E