Bakrie's Media Company Appoints Former Minister to Lead Turnaround

Jakarta. Former Tourism Minister Arief Yahya has taken a new post as the president director at Intermedia Capital, one of Indonesia's largest media company controlled by the Bakrie family.

At the new position, the 59 years old veteran executive would face a task to turn around the company fortune and bring the company books into the black following two straight quarters of losses. 

Intermedia capital shareholders held the extraordinary general shareholders meeting on Wednesday in Jakarta for Arief's appointment.

"Shareholders have decided and appointed Arief Yahya as the new president director replacing Erick Thohir," Andindya Novyan Bakrie, the president commissioner of Intermedia Capital, said in a statement after the meeting.  

Erick resigned in October 2019 after being appointed as the state-owned minister by President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo.

Arief previously served as tourism minister in Jokowi's first term, where he orchestrated a 71 percent jump in foreign tourist visits to 16.1 million in 2019 from 9.4 million in 2014. 

Before being appointed as minister, Arief served as president director of Telekomunikasi Indonesia (Telkom) from 2012 to 2014. During his two year stint, he managed to increase Telkom net income and doubled the company's market capitalization. 

In the new post at Intermedia Capital, Arief would serve with Ahmad Zulfikar and R.M. Harlin Raharjo in the board of directors. 

Anindya N. Bakrie remained as Intermedia's president commissioner, with R.M. Djoko Setiotomo and C.F. Carmelita Hardikusumo served as independent commissioners.

Intermedia is part Bakrie family's media group Visi Media Asia and controls free to air television Cakrawala Andalas Televisi (ANTV). 

In 2017, Intermedia and ANTV entered into $ 253 million loan agreements with a foreign lender Madison Pacific Trust as part of a deal for refinancing the debts in its parent company Visi Media Asia, Intermedia's financial statement showed. 

But, rupiah depreciation has forced Intermedia to book Rp 334 billion foreign exchange losses in the first quarter this year. The losses eclipsed the company operational income, pushing the company to end up with Rp 313 billion net losses in the first quarter this year, turning around from 18 billion profit in the same quarter last year.   

The company booked Rp 11 billion losses in the fourth quarter of 2019, although it still managed to end the year in the black.