Indonesian tycoons lose nearly US$57 billion as MSCI downgrade risk weighs on stocks

Five leading Indonesian tycoons and their relatives have seen almost US$57 billion wiped from their fortunes since January as warnings of a possible MSCI market downgrade triggered selling in Indonesian shares. Their combined wealth dropped to US$71.57 billion on Oct. 22 from US$128.15 billion on Jan. 27.

Indonesia’s benchmark stock index has declined 38% this year. MSCI initially raised the prospect of reclassification in January, citing concerns that shareholder disclosure rules could conceal who owns listed businesses, weaken transparency and raise the risk of improper trading.

Barito Pacific founder Prajogo Pangestu’s fortune fell by more than 60% over the period to about US$15 billion, leaving him Indonesia’s second-richest person. Robert Budi Hartono, who controls Djarum Group and owns a major Bank Central Asia stake, lost 31%, with his wealth falling from US$17.9 billion to US$12.4 billion.

Coal billionaire Low Tuck Kwong’s wealth fell by more than half to roughly US$10.5 billion. Anthoni Salim lost US$4.7 billion, while Mayapada Group’s Tahir lost US$3.4 billion. The group’s losses erased the gains accumulated as its combined fortune rose from US$76.47 billion in 2022 to US$134.72 billion at the end of 2025.

Indonesia has sought to avoid being downgraded from emerging-market to frontier-market status. But MSCI said in October that the response remained insufficient and warned that a direct move to standalone-market status was possible, raising concerns about exclusion from its major global indexes.

The Jakarta Composite Index has recovered some ground following market-stabilisation measures. These include plans, starting Nov. 2, to remove stocks whose ownership is highly concentrated in one person or entity from the benchmark. MSCI is expected to announce its classification decision by June 30, 2027.