<![CDATA[The global payment system dominated by Visa, Mastercard, and SWIFT creates structural dependency for developing countries, including Indonesia, through high transaction costs, data control outside national jurisdiction, and vulnerability to geopolitical pressure. This article aims to analyze how the Quick Response Code Indonesian Standard (QRIS) functions as an instrument of Indonesian economic statecraft to counter this dominance. Using Baldwin’s conceptual framework of economic statecraft and Farrell & Newman’s concept of weaponized interdependence, this study conducts a qualitative analysis of Bank Indonesia policies, QRIS adoption data, and cross-border cooperation in the ASEAN region. The analysis shows that QRIS not only reduces domestic transaction costs and strengthens data sovereignty but also acts as a counter-strategy that shifts Indonesia’s position from a rule-taker to a rule-shaper at the regional level, particularly through cross-border QRIS schemes with Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, and the Philippines. This article discusses how QRIS represents a defensive-adaptive strategy that builds domestic capacity without direct confrontation with the global system. The main findings confirm that QRIS is an effective economic statecraft instrument to reduce structural dependency, strengthen bargaining power, and lay the foundation for Indonesia’s digital economic sovereignty in the global era. However, the article also identifies the risks of fragmentation of global payment systems, data security, and the digital literacy gap as challenges that need to be managed.]]>
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