5 digital banks get initial BB nod for operations

Bangladesh Bank (BB) has given initial approval to five proposed digital banks, paving the way for them to begin preparations for launching fully online banking operations.

The central bank’s Board of Directors took the decision at a meeting on Thursday (September 24), chaired by Governor Md Mostaqur Rahman.

The central bank will issue Letters of Intent (LoIs) to the five applicants. An LoI is a conditional approval and is not a final banking licence. The applicants must meet regulatory and other requirements, including infrastructure and compliance conditions, before starting operations.

The five digital banks are: DK Digital Bank Ltd, backed by Bhutan’s DK Bank; bKash Digital Bank, promoted by mobile financial service provider bKash; Nova Digital Bank, a venture of Banglalink and Square; Boost Digital Bank, promoted by Robi Axiata; and Kori Digital Bank, founded by Habibullah N Karim, CEO of Technohaven. 

A total of 12 entities applied to establish digital banks in the latest round. The other applicants are British Bangla Digital Bank PLC, Amar Digital Bank-22 MFI, 36 Digital Bank PLC, Amar Bank, App Bank-Farmers, Maitree Digital Bank PLC, Upokari Digital Bank and Munafa Islami Digital Bank-Akij.

In October 2023, Bangladesh Bank granted LoIs to Nagad Digital Bank PLC and Kori Digital Bank PLC under the previous government. Following the change of government in 2024, the central bank placed Nagad's digital-bank licensing under review, while Kori was given additional time to meet compliance requirements.

The latest approvals followed a fresh evaluation of applications submitted by 12 entities. Under BB's digital-bank policy, each digital bank must have at least Tk300 crore in paid-up capital and operate through digital platforms without conventional branches.