The Popularity of bKash in Bangladesh

In Bangladesh, ‘bKash’ is one of the most spoken words. It’s almost impossible for anyone who walks along any Dhaka street to turn into the next street without hearing the word bKash. This begs the question, why does this word enjoy so much popularity?

To get to the bottom of bKash’s popularity in Bangladesh, it’s essential to know what bKash is, trace its history, and appreciate its core mission, vision, and goals. The excellent news for you, the reader, is that this article will thoroughly expose and explore all there is to know about bKash.

What is bKash?

bKash is a mobile money financial services provider. This means bKash offers a service similar to a bank, albeit eliminating all the red tape and bureaucratic features associated with a regular bank. This means bKash allows its users to deposit funds (cash in), store, transfer, and withdraw funds (cash out). Users don’t need to visit a branch like a physical bank for all these. Rather, they perform all these functions using their mobile phone! It’s such great convenience.

bKash users can use the USSD code (*247#) for all transactions. Alternatively, there is a mobile application that users can install on their mobile devices, provided they are smartphones or tablets.

Tracing the History of bKash

The story of bKash started in 2011. Kamal Quadir is the brains and founder of bKash and is currently the CEO. When Kamal Quadir conceived the idea of bKash, he and his brother Iqbal Quadir ran another fintech company called Money in Motion. They joined forces with Bangladesh’s BRAC Bank, a subsidiary of Bangladesh-based international development organization Building Resources Across Communities.

While joining forces with BRAC Bank was done to satisfy the Government of Bangladesh’s requirement which stipulated that all mobile money financial services providers needed to partner with established banks, Kamal Quadir’s decision to partner with BRAC Bank proved to be an ingenious ‘killing two birds with one stone’ smart decision. This is necessitated by the fact that bKash leveraged the legitimacy, trust, and credibility of BRAC Bank for its benefit. This, in turn, acted as the first significant launch pad to the success and popularity of bKash in Bangladesh.

Thereafter, bKash partnered with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the World Bank’s International Finance Corporation. The move earned bKash additional funding, governance and development expertise – all key ingredients to the fintech’s success.

Moreover, bKash acquired the services of Nick Hughes, a mobile money financial services guru who played a pivotal role in the growth and success of Africa’s flagship mobile money venture, M-Pesa. Hughes was employed as director of development and nominated founding board member.

By 2021, bKash had grown immensely to receive esteem recognition as a $1 billion unicorn.

Financial Inclusion – bKash’s Mission, Vision and Goal

From its inception in 2011 to today and in the future, bKash’s mission, vision, and goal is financial inclusion. bKash wants every citizen in the country to be included in the country’s financial system. To ensure that the vision is achieved, bKash targets two main areas: empowering the unbanked population and promoting the use of electronic money. Thanks to its decision to target these two main areas, bKash has managed to reach millions and in doing so, win the hearts of millions.

• Empowering the Unbanked Population: Most Bangladesh people are unbanked for various reasons. Some find the requirements set by banks to open an account too stringent, while others are unemployed and don’t see the rationale for opening a bank account. In contrast, others live in remote rural areas where accessing a bank is a resource-draining activity and hence prefer to use cash.

Recognizing the massive number of unbanked, bKash aims to include everyone in the financial system by enabling them to ‘bank’ using their mobile device.

• Promoting the Use of Electronic Money: The world is fast moving towards a global cashless society where goods and services are purchased using electronic money rather than cash. To help empower and include Bangladesh folks in this emerging system, bKash enables citizens to transact electronically using their mobile devices. bKash’s services have proved handy to most people including gambling lovers who can deposit wagering funds using bKash at all top online casinos.

Who Can Use bKash Services

As we have stated before, financial inclusion is bKash’s principal objective. This essentially means bKash is open and available to everyone. By everyone, we mean Bangladesh citizens.

• Citizens in Bangladesh: Citizens in Bangladesh can use bKash as a safe electronic wallet to keep their funds. They can also use bKash to send money to friends and family and purchase goods and services online or in-store. bKash is accessible via USSD as well as on the app. To deposit (cash in) and withdraw (cash out) hard cash, users need to use bKash’s robust network of 550,000 merchants and nearly 330,000 agents nationwide.
• Citizens in the Diaspora: bKash is also accessible to Bangladesh citizens living beyond the country’s borders. For convenience, diasporans must use the bKash App to perform any transaction they want. Note that it’s also possible to use the USSD option, but this applies to users with an active Bangladesh mobile SIM card when roaming. Diasporans can use their bKash account to remit funds home or even engage in recreational activities like online betting.

Round Up

The popularity of bKash is multi-faceted. It has been and continues to be necessitated by the successful partnerships the fintech has struck with local and international organizations. Moreover, its success has also been necessitated by its mission and vision of financial inclusion, which has made life for the unbanked population convenient while empowering and promoting Bangladesh citizens to transact electronically whenever the need arises. All this, of course, is made possible by a simple mobile device.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Q1. How can I get the bKash app?

The bKash App is free to download at most online stores, including the Google Play Store.

Q2. Is it possible to open a bKash account online?

Yes, when using the bKash App, you can open an account and complete the eKYC processes online.

Q3. Is bKash accessible beyond the Bangladesh borders?

Yes, bKash is accessible beyond Bangladesh’s borders via either the USSD option or the app. Users, however, need access to a Bangladesh mobile SIM card set on roaming to use the USSD option.