Remittances thru agent banking rises to Tk 1,73,390cr in Dec

Disbursement amount of inward remittances through agent banking rose 21.16 percent to Taka 1,73,390.72 crore at the end of December 2024.

At the end of December 2023, the figure was Taka 143,113.28 crore, which increased in September 2024 to Tk 165,659 crore, according to the quarterly report on agent banking published by the Bangladesh Bank (BB).

In September 2024 quarter, the amount of inward remittances collected and disbursed by agents has increased by 4.67 percent over the previous quarter.

Talking to BSS, a senior official of the central bank said this increase in inward remittances through agent banking is supposed to be a positive outcome of the government’s initiative of providing 2.5 percent cash incentive on inward remittances.

Moreover, banks’ financial literacy campaigns focusing on the theme ‘Enhance Social Awareness to send Remittance through Legal Channel’, announced by Bangladesh Bank is expected to have a positive impact on remittance inflow, he added.

He said agents are contributing promisingly in this regard since customers are likely to get doorstep banking services within shortest possible time.

Thus, Agent Banking is becoming popular channel for inward remittance distribution, he added.

According to the report, agent banking accounts opened in rural areas have always been the major recipients of the remittance disbursed, as they received 90.12 percent of December 2024’s total.

Of the total, only around 10 percent or Tk 7,731 crore was received by those with agent banking accounts in urban areas.

The top five banks have 95.75 percent share of the total inward remittances distributed through agent banking till December 2024. Islami Bank Bangladesh PLC ranks the top with Taka 92,300.11 crore, which is 53.23 percent of the total inward remittances distributed through agent banking.

Dutch-Bangla Bank PLC distributed 26.92 percent while Bank Asia PLC 7.98 percent, Al-Arafah Islami Bank PLC 4.43 percent and Agrani Bank PLC 3.19 percent.

Abdul Quaium Chowdhury, deputy managing director of Premier Bank PLC, said that the rising trend of agent banking, especially in rural areas, indicates that there is a remarkable potential to bring the rural unbanked people under the umbrella of formal banking services.

He said the flow of remittances into the country shows upward trend as the government has taken measures to streamline the legal channel for encouraging non-resident Bangladeshis (NRBs) to send money to the country.

Bangladesh Bank introduced agent banking in Bangladesh in 2013 with a view to providing a safe alternate delivery channel of banking services. The targeted customers of this service were the under-served population who generally live in geographically remote locations that are hard to reach by the formal banking networks.

Customers can avail various banking services including deposits, loans, overseas and local remittances, payment services (such as utility bills, taxes), and receiving government social safety-net benefits through agent banking outlets.

This model is thus gaining popularity as a cost-effective and convenient delivery channel to the mass people who would otherwise have remained beyond the reach of conventional banking services.

Banks are operating their agent banking activities in line with the Prudential Guidelines for Agent Banking Operation in Bangladesh, issued by Bangladesh Bank on 18 September 2017, covering various aspects, including the agent approval process, permissible activities, responsibilities of the banks and the agents.

It also focuses on the requirements for anti-money laundering and combating financing of terrorism (AML/CFT), and customer protection and business continuity to facilitate safe and effective proliferation of agent banking in the country.