Cashless transaction or transaction through apps, mobile financial services (MFS) and online payment method have gained momentum in Bangladesh during the pandemic as digital transaction method is being used widely for everything - from electronic fund transfers to grocery store purchases to utility bill payments.
Statistics provided by Bangladesh Bank show that there is an upward trend in digital transactions. Compared to March, electronic fund transfers in April increased by 80.43 percent that amount to Tk 28,417 crore. Meanwhile, the number of debit card uses in April has also increased by 7764 amounting to 1.98 crore during the time of lockdown.
At the end of April, card-based online shopping increased to Tk 254 crore. The previous month's turnover was Tk 224 crore.
According to the central bank, 38623 new customers joined internet banking in April. The total number of internet banking customers now stands at around 28 lakh.
To be specific, internet-based transactions of Standard Chartered Bank, Eastern Bank, BRAC Bank, Dutch-Bangla Bank and Mutual Trust Bank increased in June compared to the previous months due to coronavirus.
“We have always been encouraging customers to do online banking. In this time of coronavirus crisis, we are advising the customers not to come to the branch physically but to transact through ATM, CRM and CDM instead”, Mutual Trust Bank's managing director Syed Mahbubur Rahman told media.
According to bankers, as the app and internet-based banking have gained popularity faster than any other digital payment services, this has encouraged them to launch app-based transaction method. Through the app, the customer can transact using only one smartphone.
Bankers and other stakeholders hope that such kind of transaction will increase further in the coming days as most of the people will buy their sacrificial animals from online platforms to avoid risks, and it is certain that they will pay electronically or digitally.
Keeping that in mind country’s major MFS providers are also offering the facility of digital payment for purchasing sacrificial animals.
Nagad, the postal department's financial transaction service, can now be used for digitally purchasing sacrificial animals from Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC)'s Digital Haat during the Eid-ul-Azha.
Tanvir Ahmed Mishuk, managing director of Nagad, said, “Hard cash could be risky owing to coronavirus. That’s why Nagad has come up with a simple solution to alleviate that concern by making digital payment option available to the users. Nagad gives priority to making the transactions safe and comfortable for everyone.”
