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Indonesia Antitrust Agency Grants Conditional Approval for TikTok’s Tokopedia Acquisition

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Indonesia’s antitrust authority, the KPPU, has given a conditional green light to TikTok’s $840 million acquisition of a 75.01% stake in Tokopedia, the country’s largest e-commerce platform. The deal, completed in January 2024, was previously scrutinized for potential monopoly risks.

The KPPU’s approval comes after TikTok and Tokopedia agreed to meet several conditions designed to safeguard fair competition. These include maintaining open access to payment and logistics services and prohibiting predatory pricing practices that could harm market fairness.

During its probe, the agency had flagged concerns over increased market concentration and the possibility of post-acquisition price hikes due to TikTok’s dominant position. The conditions aim to mitigate these risks and promote a balanced digital marketplace.

TikTok expressed respect for the KPPU’s decision and reiterated its commitment to fair competition principles. The KPPU will continue monitoring compliance with the conditions until June 17, 2027, retaining authority to impose sanctions if violations occur.

FDIC Allows Banks to Engage in Crypto Activities Without Prior Approval

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The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) announced on Friday that U.S. banks no longer need to obtain advance permission to engage in certain cryptocurrency-related activities, as long as they manage associated risks appropriately. This decision marks a significant shift in the FDIC’s stance on crypto, overturning previous policy which required banks to clear any crypto involvement in advance.

Acting FDIC Chairman Travis Hill praised the change, stating, “The FDIC is turning the page on the flawed approach of the past three years.” Hill further indicated that there would be more regulatory clarifications in the future to guide banks’ engagement with crypto products and services.

The FDIC’s decision follows a similar move by another U.S. bank regulator, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), which has also been easing restrictions to allow banks more flexibility in participating in the crypto sector.

Tesla Pauses Full Self-Driving Trial in China Pending Regulatory Approval

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Tesla announced on Monday that it would halt its limited-time free trial of the Full Self-Driving (FSD) feature in China, pending the completion of regulatory approval. The pause follows complaints regarding the trial, which was initially scheduled to run from March 17 to April 16.

Tesla’s customer support addressed the issue on the social media platform Weibo, where they stated that all parties involved are working to advance the relevant approval processes. They assured customers that the feature would be released once regulatory conditions are met and urged patience.

FSD is a suite of driving-assistance technologies powered by generative artificial intelligence, designed to handle complex traffic conditions. Tesla is targeting a full rollout of FSD later this year and is collaborating with Chinese tech giant Baidu to enhance the system’s performance.

While Tesla has successfully offered such trials in the U.S. without requiring up-to-date navigation maps—relying instead on local AI training from its 2 million EVs—the company faces challenges in China due to strict data laws that prevent the system from being trained using local data. Additionally, China’s industry ministry implemented new rules in February mandating that autonomous driving-related over-the-air software updates be approved by regulators before they can be deployed.