Since the pandemic outbreak, utility bill payments using MFS accounts have been going up at a faster pace, with more and more people preferring this convenient digital means that does not require any visit to banks.
Electricity, water, gas and other service bill payments through MFS carriers jumped to nearly Tk 22 billion a month as of September 2022 in contrast to only Tk 5 billion a month in pre-pandemic times, according to data from the Bangladesh Bank.
To give people relief from the tiresome and time-consuming task of paying utility bills, there had been a need for a smart way. And the pandemic came as a blessing in disguise and boosted people's adoption of digital platforms for bill payments and other financial services.
To serve a growing number of customers with digital payment services, Nagad, a mobile financial service provider of Bangladesh Postal Department, mainly took on the mantle of connecting different utility service providers under its network to allow customers charge-free bill payments from the comfort of their home. Later, many other MFS carriers followed suit.
Even in post-pandemic times, people continue to prefer MFS carriers, especially Nagad, for bill payments, thanks to the conveniences that they provide. Customers now can easily pay bills at their convenient time without having to wait in long queues inside banks.
Amjad Khan, a resident of Dhaka's Moghbazar area, told FE, "I had to wait in queues for a long time every month to pay my electricity, water and gas bills. I faced too much hassles before I started using Nagad to pay my utility bills."
"Now, I can pay the bills at any convenient time sitting at home," he noted.
Mehedi Hasan, a resident of Mohammadpur, told FE, "It is now a five-minute job to pay my utility bills. Earlier, it used to take me a minimum of two hours when I would visit banks."
Previously, customers also went through various hassles like many banks' unwillingness to give change against round figures and their demand for the exact amount, said Faruque Ahmed, a resident from Farmgate area.
"There are no such problems on MFS platforms," he added.
To Faruque, it is a great relief that he does not need to think about banking hours anymore as Nagad and other carriers allow bill payments anytime and from any location.
Kazi Farzana, a working mother from Gulshan area, said, "I had to physically visit different locations to pay my bills. It was really painful. Now, I can pay the bills from my home, thanks to Nagad's hassle-free services."
Around 25 per cent of Bangladeshi adults use either MFS or online banking services to pay their utility bills -- the highest in the South Asian region, according to The Global Findex Database 2021, a study published by the World Bank.
Industry people have linked this rapid rise in such transactions to the growing number of customers who now depend on MFS operators - be it money transfer or bill payments.
When it comes to utility bill payments through MFS operators, Nagad leads the way as this state-owned mobile money carrier first introduced charge-free bill payments.
Contacted, Tanvir A Mishuk, founder and managing director of Nagad, told FE, "From the get-go, we have been encouraging our users to choose our Nagad platform to pay utility bills. And we did not charge any fees for the service."
Later, other MFS operators began to adopt Nagad's policy, prompting people to shift to digital payments, he said.
Nagad believes that easy bill payment facilities work as a cornerstone to bring unbanked people into the fold of financial inclusion, he noted.
