Clarification and Settlement Agreement Between Jouska, Mahesa, and the Client

Jakarta, September 1, 2020 – Aakar Abyasa Fidzuno, CEO of PT Jouska Financial Indonesia (Jouska) and Commissioner of PT Mahesa Strategis Indonesia (Mahesa), today provided an update on the settlement agreement with a number of Jouska and Mahesa clients and clarified several pieces of information circulating in the public regarding Jouska, including:

1. Settlement Agreement Between Mahesa and Jouska Clients

As of Tuesday (September 1), PT Mahesa Strategis Indonesia—represented by Aakar Abyasa as commissioner and shareholder—has successfully reached a settlement with 45 Jouska clients who filed complaints.

The terms of these settlements vary from client to client and do not always involve cash. Some involve Mahesa repurchasing the clients’ LUCK shares, offsetting lost investment gains, or no compensation at all, as the clients ultimately accepted the situation as an investment loss in the stock market.

The total value of the settlement agreements between Mahesa and the 45 Jouska clients has reached at least Rp 13 billion to date.

So far, 63 Jouska clients have filed complaints with Jouska out of 328 clients who managed their stock portfolios either independently or with the assistance of stock brokers at Mahesa. The percentage of clients who filed complaints is less than 5 percent of Jouska’s total active clients since early 2020, which has reached 1,700 clients.

“I am grateful for the cooperation and trust of Jouska’s clients in this settlement agreement. For me personally, clients come first, and I understand the financial circumstances of some clients who have also been impacted by COVID-19. That is why I am taking on this responsibility by proposing a solution in the form of a settlement agreement. My hope is that this issue will be resolved quickly without causing further turmoil in the financial industry,” said Aakar Abyasa during a press conference in Jakarta.

2. Jouska Has Never Managed Clients’ Stocks

During this press conference, Aakar Abyasa also clarified a public misunderstanding that Jouska had overstepped its authority by managing funds or even trading clients’ stock portfolios.

According to Aakar, Jouska has never even had access to clients’ stock accounts, so it cannot manage funds, let alone buy or sell clients’ stocks. Jouska has also never received commissions on client stock transactions managed by Mahesa. Jouska advisors merely recommend that Jouska clients seeking assistance in developing their stock portfolios turn to the stock brokers affiliated with Mahesa.

Because the scope of work differs, the client’s contract with Jouska is distinct from and separate from the client’s contract with Mahesa. With Jouska, the client’s contract pertains solely to advisory services between Jouska’s advisors and the client. Meanwhile, with Mahesa, Jouska clients have signed a joint agreement authorizing Mahesa brokers to execute their stock transactions.

Aakar further explained that only two parties have access to the username and password for the client’s investment account: the client themselves and the stock brokers affiliated with Mahesa. What actually happens is that brokers at Mahesa execute the buying and selling of the client’s shares, with the client’s written consent, as outlined in the mutual agreement between the client and Mahesa—not with Jouska.

However, because Jouska’s advisors communicated regularly with clients—including assisting them with nearly all forms of communication with third parties—clients and the public mistakenly believed that Mahesa was Jouska. Regarding this misunderstanding, Jouska CEO Aakar Abyasa admitted to negligence and took full responsibility. “I apologize for the mistakes and negligence on my part as CEO of Jouska, particularly as our client base grew rapidly and our communication SOPs had not yet been updated. The overly frequent communication between Jouska advisors and clients—including assistance with communications involving third parties—apparently led clients to equate Mahesa with Jouska,” said Aakar.

Aakar Abyasa also explained that PT Jouska Finansial Indonesia and PT Mahesa Strategis Indonesia are two distinct entities, located in two different office locations, and there is no cooperation agreement between Jouska and Mahesa. Jouska has never received any commission for the stock portfolios created by Mahesa, even though a small portion of Mahesa’s clients came from Jouska referrals.

Mahesa is a kind of trading club consisting of a group of licensed stockbrokers, in which Aakar Abyasa serves only as a passive majority shareholder who is not involved in Mahesa’s operations.

3. Jouska and LUCK Stock

Aakar Abyasa clarified that Jouska advisors never advised clients to buy LUCK stock. Jouska advisors were previously unaware of which stocks would be purchased with client funds managed by Mahesa, as this falls under the agreement between the client and Mahesa. Jouska advisors only learned of the purchase of LUCK shares during the periodic portfolio review.

Regarding the client’s complaint that a Jouska advisor advised against selling LUCK shares, Aakar explained that at that time, our advisor was merely reminding the client of a clause in the agreement between the client and Mahesa—specifically, that the client must not intervene, as this could disrupt Mahesa’s team’s stock portfolio development plan.

Furthermore, when the price of LUCK shares fell, the Jouska team also hoped there was still a possibility that the price of LUCK shares would rebound, based on insights from brokers at Mahesa. Consequently, the Jouska team continued to work to ensure that Jouska clients could sell their shares at a better price. “We’re trying to find the best solution for our clients amid this unfavorable capital market situation so they can resell their shares at a better price,” said Aakar.

As a passive shareholder and commissioner, Aakar Abyasa also expressed regret and apologized for his negligence in overseeing Mahesa’s operations. “Our primary focus is on our clients’ interests and resolving issues without causing a commotion. I apologize for my negligence in overseeing Mahesa and for investing in the company from the outset, and I also apologize for failing to communicate effectively with clients on behalf of third parties.”