Breaking the Chains
The Riba-Free Path to Financial Independence & Lasting Legacy
Preface
My Journey to Financial Freedom & the Birth of BangNano
It’s often said that if you want to understand a problem deeply, you need to step outside your comfort zone. My path to financial freedom—and the birth of what we now call The BangNano Movement—began with an early leap into entrepreneurship, countless lessons learned in a foreign environment, and a strong desire to reconnect with home to investigate how people in Indonesia could break free from poverty cycles.
This preface lays out that story—where I came from, why I left, what I discovered on my return, and how all these experiences led me to create a community-based, riba-free solution for everyday people.
Becoming an Entrepreneur at 15 and Achieving Financial Freedom in 20 Years
My fascination with business and problem-solving started when I was a teenager. At 15, I discovered my passion for finding solutions by addressing an unmet demand for Tamagotchi digital pets among kids in Jakarta, Indonesia. That early venture launched a three-decade pursuit of creating businesses, developing technology solutions, and building a socio-economic movement.
Each experience taught me valuable lessons—how to negotiate, set fair prices, and manage limited resources. But the most important lesson was this: opportunities are everywhere if you keep your eyes open, and consistent effort leads to results—especially when you’re not deterred by mistakes.
After starting and running a series of businesses in various industries, by 35, I had achieved what most people call financial freedom—where my business income and investments covered my basic necessities, even if I took a break. But the journey to get there took 20 years. It was not a straight line or a quick victory, but a steady process of avoiding debt traps, reinvesting profits wisely, and keeping my principles front and center.
At the time, I thought this was the natural path—work hard, figure things out, and eventually break free. But later, I realized that most people don’t have two decades to experiment, fail, and try again. If I could compress those 20 years of lessons into 5 for someone else, wouldn’t that be worthwhile?
Spending three decades in North America, Away from Indonesia
Not long after my early forays into entrepreneurship, I found myself moving to North America, where I lived, studied, worked, and ran ventures for three decades in an environment shaped by capitalistic, riba-based frameworks.
As a Muslim, I faced challenges reconciling my desire to avoid riba (interest) with an economic system that seemed to revolve around it. Everything—from mortgages to car loans to student debt—hinged on interest rates. Navigating everyday financial tasks without entangling myself in riba took tremendous effort.
I also realized that financial success required a broad set of skills—accounting, sales, marketing, coding, and more. But even with all these skills, it still took me 20 years to achieve financial stability. Looking back, I wondered:
What if there was a way for others to achieve financial independence without spending decades struggling in a system designed to keep them dependent?
Returning Home After 17 Years to Investigate Conditions in Indonesia
While I built my life in North America, I always felt a pull toward Indonesia, my birthplace. After 17 years away, I returned to discover how everyday people were managing their finances.
I spoke with politicians, entrepreneurs, and academics, gaining insights into the broader financial structures. But I also talked to laborers, service workers, and small traders—those living the daily realities of an economy built on riba.
- Many had taken small riba-based loans for a motorbike to get to work, only to find themselves paying inflated interest rates that ate away their earnings.
- Others stored their savings in conventional banks with negligible returns, losing value to inflation.
- People worked hard, yet felt trapped—like no matter how much they earned, financial security remained just out of reach.
The more people I met, the more convinced I became that a riba-free financial system wasn’t just a religious ideal—it was a practical necessity.
A Broken System That Traps People
Returning to Indonesia, I saw firsthand how income disparity, corruption, and predatory debt kept people struggling. Families who worked hard still found themselves trapped in debt cycles, forced to take out loans with exploitative terms just to survive.
I realized that escaping this system wasn’t just about financial literacy—it required an alternative model altogether.
For years, I had thought financial freedom was an individual journey—something you achieved through discipline, knowledge, and smart investing. But seeing these struggles up close made me understand that personal success means little if the people around you remain trapped in an unfair system.
A New Approach: The Birth of BangNano
It became clear that breaking free required more than just individual effort—it needed a holistic approach. Financial literacy, spiritual alignment, and a community-driven alternative to riba-based systems were all essential.
That realization led to BangNano—a grassroots movement built on trust, collaboration, and real asset-backed finance.
The name itself reflects its mission:
- “Bang”: A friendly term in Indonesian, meaning “older brother” or a figure of guidance and support.
- “Nano”: Something small and humble—representing ordinary people striving to improve their lives without being overshadowed by large, impersonal financial institutions.
Together, BangNano stands for “Big Brother to the Small”—an economic and social movement that replaces interest-based exploitation with fair, transparent, real-asset-backed prosperity.
A Vision for Balanced Living
BangNano is not just about avoiding riba—it’s about giving people a real chance at financial dignity.
It’s about freedom.
When I first started this journey, I thought financial independence was a solo pursuit—but I realized true wealth comes from lifting others up alongside you.
That’s why BangNano exists: to ensure no one has to walk this path alone.
Moving Forward
In the next chapters, we’ll explore:
- Why the current economic system traps people, including deeper dives into riba and fiat currency1.
- How to establish your own financial security, including strategies to protect, grow, and share your wealth.
- How to build and join a riba-free community, creating financial models based on trust, collaboration, and ethical wealth-building.
Everything started with a personal quest for financial freedom. But when I returned home, I saw that many people simply didn’t have the luxury of trial and error.
This book condenses the lessons I’ve learned over decades into a practical roadmap, so you don’t have to take 20 years to figure it all out.
And the best part? You don’t have to do it alone.
If you’ve ever felt like the financial system is stacked against ordinary people, know that you are not alone—and that real solutions exist.
With knowledge, sincerity, and collective effort, we can break the chains that riba and predatory debt hold over so many—and replace them with a framework that cherishes human dignity, mutual benefit, and the blessings of honest wealth.
See Appendix A: History of Modern Fiat Currency↩︎