TikTok ends retail operation in Indonesia after country decides to ban online transactions

TikTok said it will halt its online retail operation in Indonesia on Wednesday to comply with the country’s decision to ban e-commerce transactions on social media platforms — a big blow to the video platform’s fastest-growing market.

The Indonesian government announced the new regulation, which prohibits social media companies from facilitating sales of products on their platforms, on September 28 in a bid to protect small businesses from e-commerce competition. It accused the popular apps of predatory pricing. The Chinese-owned video-sharing app said in a statement it will stop facilitating e-commerce sales in TikTok Shop Indonesia by 5 pm Wednesday.

“Our priority is to remain compliant with local laws and regulations,” said the statement released Tuesday on its website.