Business Desk :
Consumers’ attitude is shifting to digital payment driven by ongoing pandemic and conducive regulatory environment which has made Mobile financial service (MFS) as the ultimate platform for all types of consumers.
Most consumers in a survey conducted among 330 consumers of different segments recently in the different market places of the capital city Dhaka said that they are using MFS as an alternative payment tool to buy goods and foods.
The ongoing Covid-19 pandemic has persuaded them to become more digitalized and this has led to higher levels of customer satisfaction thanks to conducive regulatory environment.
The survey was conducted by Bangladesh Journalists’ Foundation For Consumers’ And Investors (BJFCI), the registered social platform of senior journalists of leading dailies and media dedicated to work for the rights of consumers and protect the interest of investors.
Out of 330 consumers, 300 consumers (99 per cent) under the survey said that they have mobile payment accounts and use their accounts occasionally to buy goods, pay electricity or other utility bills, send money to relatives and pay to shoppers through e-commerce platform.
Of them, 280 consumers use bkash account to send and receive money while 150 consumers said they started using bKash app in buying goods, foods and medicines since the lock down time in 2021.
They use bKash app in cafe, restaurants and in shopping malls to buy goods, products as bKash announces cash back offer and retailers give lucrative discount.
The rest consumers said they have been using bKash app since last month after Omicron started to surge. Initially they felt shy to use mobile money app in shopping and buying goods.
As more retailers, stores and even sellers in kitchen markets are now taking bKash payment and contact less payment helps them to remain safe from corona virus contamination, so they are now feeling good and secured paying payment through bkash app.
A total of 156 consumers (47%) said that often they use ATM cards. But after the pandemic, they find bKash app as an alternative option to buy foods, goods and paying bills in these pandemic days.
“It means, MFS is not only a tool for the people who are living at the bottom of the economic pyramid. People of all segments are now embracing mobile payment in their daily economic activities like shopping, travelling, business and trade”, BJFCI chairman Faruk Ahmed explained.
“The coronavirus outbreak is prompting second thoughts about reaching for cash and people in Bangladesh find MFS as an ultimate option for them. Because, it reduces the costs and risks of handling cash, increase the ease of conducting online transactions, and increase transparency among monetary transactions among people”, he said.
The survey was conducted among 330 consumers who visited markets in Khilgaon & Taltola (65), Santinagor & Baily Road (52), Mouchak & Anarkoli Market (46), Gulshan, Bonani (49), New Market & Gausia ( 58), Bashundhora Shopping Mall ( 60)during the last week of January.
Out of total 330 consumers under the survey 246 consumers (74%) said that they are not worry about cash out charge but worried about fraudulence activities and limit of cash transactions.
According to them, the government should increase transaction limit through mobile payment platform to encourage people transact digital money as well as stringent its supervision on mobile pay operators to avoid frauds and untoward incidents.
