1. MOBILE WALLET
FUTURE IN
BANGLADESH
PREPARED BY
HASIBUR RAHMAN
MOBILE COMMERCE, CITYCELL

2. WHAT IS MOBILE WALLET
Mobile wallets are essentially digital versions of traditional wallets that
someone would carry in their pocket. While there are many variations,
usually they can hold digital information about credit and debit cards for
making payments, store coupons and loyalty programs, specific information
about personal identity and more.
Many Mobile wallets offer convenience and rewards

3. A customer can utilize all of their stored information simply by opening an
app on their phone, entering in a PIN, password or fingerprint and then
selecting the information they need to access. The app then utilizes
information transfer technology such as Near-Field Communications (NFC)
to interact with a mobile wallet ready payment terminals.
Steps
 Download the mobile wallet app (or it may be already built into your
mobile device).
 Add your credit card or debit card information to the mobile wallet.
 When you check out at participating merchants, access the mobile wallet
and choose your card. If you’re making an in-store purchase, just hold
your mobile device at the terminal.
HOW MOBILE WALLET WORK

4. BENEFITS OF MOBILE WALLET
Increased customer use of mobile wallet technology has benefits for
businesses of all sizes.
 Reduced fraud - mobile wallets are harder to steal or duplicate than
cards or cash
 Decreased payment time - especially important for high-volume
businesses
 Lower fees - processing fees are expected to decrease over time relative
to traditional cards
 Better customer loyalty - built through sales and incentives sent directly
to smartphones

5. MOBILE WALLET IN BANGLADESH
Bangladesh is witnessing an exponential growth in the area of digital
payment in recent times. With ever-increasing internet and mobile
penetration, the country is all set to witness a massive surge in the adoption
of digital payments in the coming years. Furthermore, flagship government
initiatives such as Digital Bangladesh will act as key catalysts and enablers
of this transformation.
Mobile wallet is a very young concept in Bangladesh that has taken on
consumer psyche rapidly. In our neighbor country, India, everyone is loving
mobile wallets and embracing them with open arms. Mobile wallet has
surpassed credit cards in terms of the number of users in just a fraction of
time.
Vijay Shekar Sharma’s venture Paytm alone has 20 million active users.
The number is higher than the cumulative number of credit cards in India.
At present, there are 10-12 mobile wallet companies operating in the
country.

6. MOBILE WALLET IN BANGLADESH
bKash is one of the oldest players in the payment market while the
company jumped into the mobile wallet space. bKash customers can enjoy
up to 20 percent cash back if they make payments through bKash account
to buy products from 441 outlets of 56 reputed brands across the country.
Major brands like, Aarong, Yellow, Cat’s Eye, Lotto, Menz Klub,
ajkerdeal.com, iferi.com, chaldal.com, etc. participating in the campaign.
In order to make payments via bKash, customer needs to dial *247# to
access the bKash menu, select ‘3’ for ‘Payment ’ option and then follow
the simple interactive steps to avail the payment service.
Customers do not need to pay any charge while making payment through
bKash and the cash back.

7. IT STARTS WITH THE CONSUMER
Consumers have made their preferences clear — they want a shopping
companion. Mobile wallets eliminate the need for paper items (such as
coupons and boarding passes), organize bulky items (such as loyalty
cards), and expedite the check-out process at their favorite retailers. This
desire and the fast-adoption reveal untapped potential, not necessarily in
payments but in the non-payment side of the mobile wallet.
We are still in the early days of the mobile wallet transformation. The main
landscape today is comprised of Apple’s Passbook, launched in September
2012, and Google Wallet, launched in 2013.
An independent research conducted on 100 smartphone users (18+ age
group) recently showed that 70 percent of consumers believe they will be
more comfortable with mobile wallets rather than conventional credit or
debit cards.

8. WILL SMARTPHONE (MOBILE WALLET)
REPLACE CASH AND CREDIT/DEBIT CARDS ?
0
10
20
30
40
50
In less than
3 years
in 3 to 5
years
In 5 to 10
years
In more than
10 years
Never
Respondents

9. RESPONDENTS FEEDBACK ON FAMILIARITY
AND USAGE OF MOBILE WALLET
0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
100%
Familiarity with Mobile Wallet
Very familiar
Somewhat
familiar
Unfamiliar
0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
100%
Use of Mobile Wallet
Will use it
Maybe use it
Not interested

10. CONCERN ARISES AMONG RESPONDENTS
REGARDING MOBILE WALLET
Concerns Points Responde
nt
I am worried about security 55
I don’t want to pay any fees 2
I don’t want the store to have my mobile wallet info 3
Not as convenient as using cash or a credit card 3
Credit cards have better facilities 3
Credit cards have better securities 5
It will not be available at stores, I would want to use it 10
Mobile screens are too small 4
I don’t trust any app for bill payment 5
Technology doesn’t always work properly 10

11. KEY TAKEAWAYS
 While mobile payment growth has not lived up to the hype, most
believe we are entering a phase of significant growth in acceptance and
usage.
 The key to success of mobile wallets will be the ability to integrate
payment, loyalty and contextual engagement functionality while
addressing security concerns.
 While tech companies have a significant head start in the race for
mobile wallet supremacy, many major banks will develop their own
mobile wallets to acquire and serve digital consumers.
 It is still unclear if mobile wallets will become an integrated function
within the mobile banking app or be a separate tool primarily for
payments.

12. MOBILE WALLETS: A GLOBAL PERSPECTIVE
While consumers in the U.S. and many other developed economies are
taking to mobile payments in slow but steady numbers, in developing
countries – or countries with much newer banking systems that exist
without legacy technology and processes – using a mobile device to pay for
goods and services comes much more naturally.
In a 2013 study, India and China had the highest percentage of consumers
who indicated they have made purchases through a mobile device of all the
countries studied. Eighteen percent of respondents in China, and fifteen
percent of those in India, indicated they had purchased items via a mobile
device. The global average for all countries studied, by comparison, was
8%.

13. INTERNET USERS IN DIFFERENT COUNTRIES
WHO PURCHASE ITEMS VIA MOBILE DEVICE
0 5 10 15 20
China
India
UK
Australia
USA
Germany
Sweden
Canada
Italy
Netherlands
France
Total
% of respondents

14. MOBILE WALLETS: A GLOBAL PERSPECTIVE
In countries such as India, mobile payments are seen as a prime way to
bring the unbanked into the formal financial system. Many African markets
have also seen sky-high adoption of mobile payments and wallet solutions.
According to a report from EdgarDunn Company, M-PESA, Kenya’s mobile
money system, is the leading example of how this can rapidly be achieved.
It’s clear that mobile payments in many parts of the globe are adopted at far
higher rates than in more developed economies, such as North America
and western Europe. Much of that has to do with the fact many citizens in
these countries are not part of the formal banking system, and thus don’t
have to be “weaned off” of traditional payment methods.

15. PREPARING FOR THE FUTURE
When examining the current state of the mobile wallet, it seems Barriers to
mobile wallet adoption will fade overall. Security concerns remain the
number one barrier to mobile wallet adoption— however just 60% of
respondents list security as the number one barrier, where 74% even didn’t
knew this concept. The near ubiquity of online shopping may be acclimating
consumers to perceived security risks like identity theft.
Some big banks may have the resources to develop something in house,
while the vast majority of others will partner with existing solutions.
It’s always much better to be at the forefront of innovation – or at least to be
a fast follower – than to be left behind in the dust.

16. RESOURCES
 An independent research conducted
on 100 smartphone users.
 The Financial Brand
(http://thefinancialbrand.com/)
 CGAP
(http://www.cgap.org/)
 Bangladesh Bank
(https://www.bb.org.bd/)
 The Business Line
(http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/)