Mobile banking carving a niche

Mobile banking has taken off in a big way on the back of a rapid expansion of financial outlets in rural areas.
On average, around Tk 121.25 crore is transacted a day through mobile banking services, according to Bangladesh Bank data.
As of April, the country had 52.54 lakh mobile banking subscribers, up 12.47 percent from the previous month. The total number of agents providing such services across the country stood at 83,638 on April 30, up 15.80 percent from March.
Using a mobile phone and without making a visit to a bank branch, a customer can transfer money, receive salary or pay bills from his/her account.
More unbanked people, especially in the rural areas, are joining formal banking activities through mobile phones, said Kamal Quadir, chief executive of bKash, which has 58,000 agents.
The number of total subscribers of bKash is 40 lakh now and 20 percent of them transact regularly, he said.
“A rising number of people are now taking to mobile banking as it gives them a hassle-free transaction at an affordable cost,” said Abul Kashem Md Shirin, deputy managing director of Dutch-Bangla Bank Ltd, which introduced the service in 2011.“DBBL has mobile banking outlets even at the union parishad level. As a result, more people are enjoying formal banking services.”
The company's mobile banking subscribers stood at around 12 lakh till April, he said.
As part of the government's financial inclusion programme, the BB has given nod to 26 banks since 2010 to provide mobile banking services. To date, 17 have launched the service.
AFM Asaduzzaman, general manager of Governor's Secretariat at the BB, tips this banking sub-sector to grow further once all garment factories start to provide their workers' salaries through this service.
"People's trust on mobile banking is growing gradually."