Maintaining Salafi ideological authenticity and financial autonomy : the case of Yufid Network

Abstract

This study examines the relationship between religious movements, economic practices, and institutional sustainability in contemporary digital contexts. While much of the existing literature portrays the Salafi movement in Indonesia as economically dependent on transnational Middle Eastern funding and lacking internal financial autonomy, this study challenges this assumption by examining the Yufid Network as an empirical case of institutional growth and financial independence within Indonesia’s Salafi context. It argues that planned economic diversification strategies and ideological image positioning play a crucial role in achieving financial independence and institutional sustainability. The research focuses on the internal financial system of the Yufid Network, the largest Salafi online media organization in Indonesia, which operates without sustained reliance on foreign financial support. A qualitative approach was employed, based on a three-month ethnographic field study in Yogyakarta. Data were collected through participant observation, semi-structured interviews with organizational managers, and analysis of digital archives and institutional reports. The findings show that the financial sustainability of the Yufid Network is built through several key mechanisms, including the separation of commercial activities into specialized units such as Yufid Store, the use of a donation-based funding system, and efficient human resource management. A key finding is that the organization’s refusal to adopt conventional digital advertising models such as YouTube AdSense is not only a theological position but also a strategic choice that reinforces an image of ideological authenticity. This ideological positioning functions as an economic resource by strengthening audience trust, which is then converted into stable financial support. In conclusion, this study argues that financial autonomy in puritan religious organizations in Indonesia is achieved through a measurable integration of doctrinal commitment and market-based professionalism, where economic diversification and ideological framing jointly sustain institutional resilience in the digital public sphere.