JAKARTA, April 28 (Reuters) - Indonesia's biggest lender by assets, Bank Rakyat Indonesia (BRI), is targetting an up to 18% profit rise in 2021 as an economic recovery from the coronavirus pandemic bolsters demand for loans, its chief executive told Reuters.

BRI's profits dropped 45.8% on a yearly basis to 18.66 trillion rupiah ($1.29 billion) in 2020.

This year, BRI aims for net income to rise to 20 trillion to 22 trillion rupiah, President Director Sunarso said in an interview, setting a target for 7% annual loan growth and non-performing loan (NPL) levels at 3%.

(Reporting by Tabita Diela Editing by Ed Davies)