“Banking is necessary; banks are not” said Bill gates--a founder of Microsoft Corporation-- and it seems to be coming true. Digital financial services including Mobile Financial Services (MFS), which has been flourishing the banking industry over the three decades, has achieved tremendous popularity across the world during the ongoing crisis induced by Covid-19. With myriad benefits, MFSs are growing at a fast clip in Bangladesh. A tiny number of challenges lies in MFS when it comes to pulling all sorts of citizen into formal banking sectors.
Launched in 2011, MFS in Bangladesh has come a long way and extended their services to its respective users. Today, more than 10 crore people out of a population of nearly 17 crore plus use mobile banking or have an MFS account. Of them, over three crore MFS account holders are active and they collectively transact Tk 1, 786 crore daily. The ongoing crisis induced by Covid-19 has accelerated in terms of adding customers to MFS. For instance, Bkash- a leading MFS provider in Bangladesh has added one crore, taking its total clients base to 5 crore with 2. 4 lakh agent. Its daily transection has passed the 1000 crore.
The fact that MFS has emerged as a one stop services from sending money and receiving money to making payments for education, transportation, utility services--electricity bill, gas bill, water bill and mobile bill –and medical has encouraged the citizen to sign up into a MFS account.
Despite having numerous opportunities of MFS, a tiny number of challenges remains in this industry. The key impediments of this sector, undoubtedly, are fraudulent, exorbitant service charges, less penetration of smart phone. Although MFS operators has witnessed a surge in registering to their respective operator, Bangladesh lags far behind neighboring countries including china and India when it comes to providing loan through MFS.
If the interoperability is ensured among the providers, and service charges are brought down, the industry will reach a new height. The regulatory Body must sit with expert and stake holders of MFS to address the drawbacks of this sector.
“Banking
is necessary; banks are not” said
Bill
gates--a founder of Microsoft Corporation-- and it seems to be coming true. Digital financial
services
including Mobile Financial
Services
(MFS), which has been flourishing the
banking
industry over the three decades, has achieved tremendous popularity across the world during the ongoing crisis induced by Covid-19. With myriad benefits,
MFSs
are growing at a
fast
clip in Bangladesh. A tiny number of challenges lies in MFS when it
comes
to pulling all sorts of citizen into formal
banking
sectors.
Launched in 2011, MFS in Bangladesh has
come
a long way and extended their
services
to its respective users.
Today
, more than 10 crore
people
out of a population of
nearly
17 crore plus
use
mobile
banking
or have an MFS account. Of them, over three crore MFS account holders are
active and
they
collectively
transact
Tk
1, 786
crore
daily. The ongoing crisis induced by Covid-19 has accelerated in terms of adding customers to MFS.
For instance
,
Bkash
- a leading MFS provider in Bangladesh has
added
one crore, taking its total clients base to 5
crore
with 2. 4 lakh
agent
. Its daily
transection
has passed the 1000 crore.
The fact that MFS has emerged as a one
stop
services
from sending money and receiving money to making payments for education, transportation, utility services--electricity
bill
, gas
bill
, water
bill
and mobile
bill
–and medical has encouraged the citizen to
sign
up into
a
MFS account.
Despite having numerous opportunities of MFS, a tiny number of challenges remains in this industry. The key impediments of this sector,
undoubtedly
, are fraudulent, exorbitant
service
charges, less penetration of smart phone. Although MFS operators has witnessed a surge in registering to their respective operator, Bangladesh lags far behind neighboring countries including
china
and India when it
comes
to providing loan through MFS.
If the interoperability
is ensured
among the providers, and
service
charges
are brought
down, the industry will reach a new height. The regulatory Body
must
sit with expert and stake holders of MFS to address the drawbacks of this sector.