A sudden extension of transaction controls to 96 hours sent Bangladesh's mobile money system into turmoil on Monday, leaving thousands unable to cash out, send money, or receive wages as multiple Mobile Financial Services (MFS) platforms struggled to adapt within hours.
The new regulation, effective from Monday midnight until Thursday midnight, was imposed ahead of the 13th national election. By the afternoon, users across networks reported frozen apps, failed transfers, and stalled wallet services, turning a regulatory control measure into an immediate public hardship.
Long queues formed at agent points, with many leaving empty-handed. One frustrated customer said, "Since afternoon I tried several times to cash out, but nothing worked. My money is in the wallet, yet I cannot use it." Daily earners relying on instant mobile cash faced anxiety as pending transfers, delayed confirmations, and repeated app failures mounted.
The disruption quickly rippled into the garment sector. Factories preparing digital wage payments found systems unresponsive.
A garment owner said, "We attempted to pay workers through wallets, but the system did not respond. Payments are stuck and we are holding cash temporarily." Some factories delayed wage disbursement while others scrambled for manual alternatives, increasing operational strain.
Operators acknowledged the pressure on systems. An MFS provider said it had implemented the revised limits as instructed, but technical mismatches between the new caps and the existing transaction engines caused partial outages. Industry insiders noted that millions of wallets, risk filters, and settlement channels require synchronized adjustments, a process difficult to complete on short notice.
Bangladesh Bank remained firm on its monitoring stance. A senior official said, "The 96-hour window is under continuous supervision. All MFS operators must ensure transaction discipline and report any abnormal pattern immediately." Another official added that temporary mismatches could occur during recalibration, but services are expected to stabilize quickly under real-time monitoring.
The regulatory framework had already limited person-to-person transfers, capping frequency and amounts. The extended monitoring period forced operators to tighten compliance layers further, increasing the technical load on payment switches, wallet cores, and interbank settlement rails.
