Economic Reporter :
Bangladesh Bank Deputy Governor SK Sur Chowdhury has said the central bank will not allow mobile operator-led mobile financial service (MFS).
"We will not allow any mobile operator-led model except bank-led model," Sur said at a roundtable held at a city hotel on Tuesday.
United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) Bangladesh organised the roundtable titled "Role of Digital Financial Services in promoting inclusive growth: challenges and opportunities".
At present, mobile financial services are being run by commercial banks. Mobile operators have long sought to run the MFS but the banks were always opposed to the idea.
According to the Regulatory Guidelines for Mobile Financial Services in Bangladesh, the MFS platforms will be sponsored and led only by commercial banks.
The deputy governor said the central bank in recent years has taken several initiatives to promote Digital Financial Services (DFS).
"Bangladesh Bank and Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission are working together to boost up this kinds of services," he said, adding that DFS brought new opportunity.
He said income gap was narrowing due to mobile financial services.
Dr Mustafa K Mujeri, executive director of Institute for Inclusive Finance and Development (InM), presented the keynote paper at the programme.
Mujeri emphasised on creating a well-functioning and satisfactory digital financial service framework.
He urged the authorities concern to set a well-articulated vision of DFS and undertake a comprehensive review of MFS guidelines and agency banking guidelines. He also suggested developing a risk management framework aligned to global industry standards and promoting innovation as well as managing risks.

The World Bank has resumed direct budget support to impoverished Malawi with an $80-million injection three years after donors pulled out due to a "cashgate" corruption scandal, officials said Saturday.
Donors, which provide about 40 percent of Malawi's budget, in 2013 pulled the plug on aid of around $150 million (110 million euros) after British auditors said at least $30 million was stolen from state coffers over a six-month period.
The Bank, a major backer of the southeast African country's tough economic reforms, had in the past said support would only come if Malawi implemented financial management systems that would stop fraud and massive theft of state funds.
The "cashgate" affair erupted with revelations about funds going missing involving dozens of officials, businessmen and politicians. Four people were jailed.
The scandal led to the withdrawal of aid by numerous countries. It also contributed to the defeat of president Joyce Banda in elections in 2014, won by her rival Peter Mutharika who took office vowing to fight corruption.
Laura Kullenberg, the Bank's country manager, said Malawi had "taken some very important reform steps and it is critical to maintain momentum and deepen reforms going forward to move Malawi out of the circle of vulnerability and onto a development path".

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