Progati Life Insurance, a private sector life insurance company in the country, has expressed interest in establishing a digital bank. Recently, the company’s board of directors made a decision on this matter and, as a publicly listed company, informed investors of their interest as price-sensitive information.
This information was announced today, Thursday, through the website of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE). Progati Life stated that they are interested in jointly establishing the digital bank along with several other institutions, rather than doing so individually. Bangladesh Bank has recently issued a notification inviting applications for establishing digital banks, in which Progati Life will participate and, upon approval, will invest 5% of the paid-up capital.
According to Bangladesh Bank’s guidelines, the minimum paid-up capital for a digital bank must be BDT 30 billion, of which Progati Life will invest 5%, amounting to BDT 150 million.
As per the guidelines, digital banks will not have any physical branches, ATMs, CDMs, or CRMs. Customer service will be ensured 24/7 solely through mobile and app-based platforms. Transactions will be facilitated using virtual cards, QR codes, and other modern technology-based products; however, no physical plastic cards will be issued. Customers will be able to use ATMs and agent services of other banks.
The digital bank will not provide loans to large or medium industries; lending will be limited to small loans only, and no Letters of Credit (LCs) will be issued.