Economic Reporter :
Thousands of Mobile Financial Service (MFS) users are being exploited by Nagad’s ongoing obfuscating pricing campaign that allures them to use their platform to transact money at little less or at market rates- not at lowest rates as claimed by the operator.
Nagad, the digital payment platform of the Bangladesh Post Office, operated by a third party private fintech firm has been campaigning in mass media and their website that they offer the lowest cash out price – Tk 9.99 per Tk 1000 transaction to mark the birth anniversary of the Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
But the reality is far different. Nagad’s offer (excluding VAT) is valid only for cash-out transactions over Tk 2,100 which frustrates many poor consumers who normally do cash-out transaction of small ticket size of below Tk 2,100.
Many poor customers opened Nagad accounts and became frustrated while doing cash-out at Nagad agent points as they are charged Tk 18.50 as fee for Tk 1000 transaction which is nowhere near to Nagad’s campaign offer, according to a Market Report of Bangladesh Journalists’ Foundation for Consumers and Investors (BJFCI), the largest platform of senior journalists of leading dailies who are devoted to consumer rights protection.
The BJFCI report was prepared based on a survey conducted among 32 MFS agents and 43 users in Motijheel, Malibagh, Bashabo, Khilgaon and Mirpur areas in the capital city. A total of 16 MFS agents say they faced angers from Nagad customers while they had nothing to do with the Cash-out charge set by Nagad. Others said they had no Nagad customers in the last two weeks.
Thousands of Mobile Financial Service (MFS) users are being exploited by Nagad’s ongoing obfuscating pricing campaign that allures them to use their platform to transact money at little less or at market rates- not at lowest rates as claimed by the operator.
Nagad, the digital payment platform of the Bangladesh Post Office, operated by a third party private fintech firm has been campaigning in mass media and their website that they offer the lowest cash out price – Tk 9.99 per Tk 1000 transaction to mark the birth anniversary of the Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
But the reality is far different. Nagad’s offer (excluding VAT) is valid only for cash-out transactions over Tk 2,100 which frustrates many poor consumers who normally do cash-out transaction of small ticket size of below Tk 2,100.
Many poor customers opened Nagad accounts and became frustrated while doing cash-out at Nagad agent points as they are charged Tk 18.50 as fee for Tk 1000 transaction which is nowhere near to Nagad’s campaign offer, according to a Market Report of Bangladesh Journalists’ Foundation for Consumers and Investors (BJFCI), the largest platform of senior journalists of leading dailies who are devoted to consumer rights protection.
The BJFCI report was prepared based on a survey conducted among 32 MFS agents and 43 users in Motijheel, Malibagh, Bashabo, Khilgaon and Mirpur areas in the capital city. A total of 16 MFS agents say they faced angers from Nagad customers while they had nothing to do with the Cash-out charge set by Nagad. Others said they had no Nagad customers in the last two weeks.
