Starting from Monday, mobile financial services (MFS) users of any providers will be able to transfer funds from their accounts to the accounts of users using a separate provider by a newly-introduced system called Binimoy.
This means, for example, a bKash service user will be able to transfer money to another user’s account, registered under Rocket or Nagad, and vice versa.
The new system, which was introduced on Sunday at a hotel in Dhaka, will also allow MFS users to transfer funds to any local bank accounts and make payments of utility charges via a payment service provider or PSP, according to Md Mezbaul Haque, a director of Bangladesh Bank who highlighted the features of the new system.
Mezbaul confirmed that 11 banks, MFSs and PSPs have signed up with the platform as of now. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s ICT affairs advisor Sajeeb Wazed Joy inaugurated the system on Sunday, according to bdnews24.com.
Velwar Ltd, in cooperation with Microsoft Bangladesh and Orion Informatics Ltd, developed the platform.
Bangladesh government’s ICT Division and Bangladesh Bank's Innovation and Entrepreneurship Development Academy programme are in charge of the platform. Velwar is in charge of maintaining the platform.
HOW ‘BINIMOY’ WORKS
The new system, which has been styled as an Interoperable Digital Transaction Platform (IDPT), will facilitate transactions between consumers, merchants, PSPs, e-wallets, banks, financial institutions, government agencies and private institutions.
According to Mezbaul, the web-based platform will facilitate integration between various bank apps, mobile financial services and payment system providers, which will make all financial transactions cost-effective, simple and transparent.
“In addition, it can be used to pay salaries to employees, send remittances, pay taxes/VAT, pay various utility bills and conduct e-commerce transactions,” he said during the presentation.
An MFS user needs to register with the IDPT to use the platform.
An online ID will be generated after registration.
To transfer funds or to pay for utilities, users only need to use the ID.
The catch is, however, the MFS or bank account of the recipient or the destination PSP must be registered with the platform to make the transaction happen.
THE CHARGES
Bangladesh Bank, in a gazette notification on Thursday, announced the charges users have to pay to use the new IDPT system.
To transfer funds from one MFS account to another, the users will be charged Tk 5 for every Tk 1,000 transferred.
Users of MFS services will be charged Tk 10 for transferring every Tk 1,000 from MFS accounts to local bank accounts.
It will cost MFS users Tk 5 for Tk 1,000 to make payments via PSP.