Analysts at the roundtable say the service needs further promotion, coordination
Bangladesh can use mobile financial services not only to accelerate financial inclusion, but also to bring more than 85 percent unbanked population to the mainstream at a cost effective manner.
Despite the enormous demand for mobile phone-based financial services, a large-scale adoption is yet not seen.
Analysts and policymakers made the observation at a roundtable co-organised by The Daily Star, BRAC Bank and bKash at The Daily Star Centre yesterday.
Former adviser to caretaker government Abdul Muyeed Chowdhury moderated the programme.
Some of the discussants proposed to form a body comprising the officials of the central bank, the telecom regulator, microfinance regulator and other stakeholders, to promote the services.
“A body can be formed to identify the problems and expand the services further,” said Khondkar Ibrahim Khaled, chairman of Bangladesh Krishi Bank and former deputy governor of Bangladesh Bank.
He said microfinance institutions can be the alternatives to the banks in expanding the mobile financial services across the country.
Muhammad Abdul Mazid, former chairman of the National Board of Revenue, also echoed the views of Ibrahim Khaled on the coordination issue.
“There is a necessity of coordination among the regulators to avoid any conflicting situation,” said Mazid who presented a paper on mobile financial services in Bangladesh.
The coordination issue came to the limelight as mobile financial services in Bangladesh are a bank-led model run by mobile phone companies, which are regulated by the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC).
Often these two regulators come up with separate orders having no coordination between them.
Iqbal Quadir, a director of bKash and a teacher at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the US, also raised the conflicting issues between the banking regulator and the telecom regulator.
AB Mirza Azizul Islam, another former adviser to caretaker government, also stressed the need for coordination in the regulatory framework of the Bangladesh Bank and the BTRC.
Abdul Muyeed Chowdhury also endorsed the idea of forming a separate committee to promote the services.
Bangladesh, with a population of 150 million and a per capita income of around $800, has seen a steady economic growth over the past 15 years. Poverty rates have halved from 60 percent in early 1990s to 31 percent in 2010.
This development has also been reflected in the growth of the country’s financial sector, supported by the recent transformation in banking technology.
Speakers said despite these significant improvements, access to basic financial services is still restricted to only 15 percent people.
They said, for the financially excluded people, opening and maintaining bank accounts can be costly, complex and time-consuming due to a lack of education and awareness.
The central bank has allowed 23 banks to operate mobile financial services. But only two banks — BRAC and Dutch-Bangla — have come up with the services and registered 20 lakh clients so far.
“Identity is a big problem,” said Nazrul Islam Khan, secretary to the ICT ministry, on the security concern in mobile banking services.
Khan said he is trying to convince the government to make an accurate database of the population, which can be used for mobile banking services.
Mahabub Hossain, executive director of BRAC, a non-government organisation, said mobile banking can benefit the poor who feel shy to go to a bank. But further investment is needed to reach out to the people, he added.
Khalid Shams, former chairman of Grameenphone, said there are some risks in the service, but Bangladesh should seize the opportunity.
Shams, a former bureaucrat, also asked the operators to come up with new products for the targeted people.
Abul Kashem Md Shirin, deputy managing director of Dutch-Bangla Bank, said cost is not a big issue in mobile banking as there will be no cost if there is no use. On security concern, he said it is like using credit/debit cards and there is nothing to be anxious.
Michael Kuehner, chief executive officer of mobile operator Robi, said costing and convenience of services are the two main components in mobile banking.
Hassan Zaman, chief economist of the central bank, said they have planned to launch a financial literacy campaign to make people aware. On why other banks are not coming with the mobile banking services, he said may be it is for the investment and profit margin issues.
Zaman also said the BB is trying to disburse money to the targeted people through mobile phones under different government programmes.
Brig Gen (retd) Shahedul Anam Khan, defence and strategic affairs editor of The Daily Star, delivered a welcome address, while Shah Husain Imam and Salehuddin Ahmed, associate editor and managing editor of the daily, and Syed Mahbubur Rahman, managing director of BRAC Bank, also spoke.
Source: The Daily Star
