Transactions through Internet banking increased 5 percent in November 2023 compared to the previous month while mobile banking such as use of credit cards and debit cards witnessed a slight decline.
Bangladesh Bank (BB) data shows in November last year, transactions through Internet banking reported Tk82,866 crore, which is a 5.07 percent rise over the previous month.
However, Internet banking registered a 200 percent year-on-year growth in November compared to transaction of Tk27,426 crore in November 23022.
Mobile financial services (MFS) transactions dropped by 1 percent to Tk119,600 crore, and card transactions (including ATM, POS, CRM, and e-commerce) saw a similar 1 percent dip to Tk42,638 crore from the previous month.
Bankers said the amount of Internet banking transactions now is much higher than a year ago. Most banks are now offering internet banking services, increasing the popularity of the service.
They note that monthly fluctuations of 1-2 percent are normal and shouldn necessarily indicate a trend change. However, larger variations (Tk10,000-20,000 crore) could point to potential errors.
The head of the card division of a private bank told: that Internet banking revolution started with the onset of COVID-19, increasing in popularity. Now people no longer stand in queues at the bank with cheques like before.
Bangladesh Bank data shows a significant increase in average monthly internet banking and app transactions between April-September 2023 (Tk45,000 crore) and November (Tk82,000 crore), representing an 80 percent growth in just four months.
Among the countrys banks, most transactions on apps are done through Islami Banks CellFin and the Internet. Almost half of the transactions are done by Islami Bank customers, followed by Dutch-Bangla Banks Nexus Pay, City Banks City Touch, BRAC Banks Astha, and Eastern Banks Sky Banking.
In November 2023, foreign currency transactions through banks cards were Tk798 crore, a decrease of about Tk14 crore compared to the previous month. However, in November 2022, foreign currency transactions through the card were Tk572 crore.
Bankers said if the banks want to endorse dollar on the cards, they have to do it at Tk110. However, open market customers have to buy dollars at Tk124.
Many banks have reduced their new card issuance due to the dollar shortage, resulting in a reduction in the amount of Dollar endorsements through it.
