Fintech & digital payments rules in Bangladesh (2026)

Parliament passed the Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2024 on 4 July 2024, the first dedicated statute for payment systems; it requires Bangladesh Bank approval to operate payment systems or issue payment instruments, with criminal penalties (up to 5 years' imprisonment or BDT 5 million fine) for unauthorized activity. Bangladesh Bank has since granted PSP licenses under Section 5(4) of this Act.

Bangladesh Bank's Payment Systems Department issues two principal license categories under BPSSR-2014: PSP licenses (e-wallets, mobile wallets and entities facilitating payments directly to customers, settling via a scheduled bank/FI) and PSO licenses (payment gateways/aggregators operating settlement systems). PSPs may also issue e-money subject to safeguarding/redemption conditions.

MFS (e.g. bKash, Rocket, Nagad) are licensed under the Bangladesh MFS Regulations, 2022, which replaced the 2018 rules; eligibility was broadened beyond scheduled banks to include bank-led entities, Bangladesh Bank-licensed financial institutions and government entities.

Bangladesh Bank and the ICT Division launched the interoperable real-time platform Binimoy (IDTP) on 13 Nov 2022 (UPI-modeled), enabling instant transfers across banks, MFS and PSPs. From 1 Nov 2025, a PSD circular connected banks, MFS and PSPs on the National Payment Switch Bangladesh (NPSB) as a single interoperable platform.

There is no finalized open-banking framework; Bangladesh Bank's draft Payment System Operators Regulation, 2025 introduces, for the first time, a dedicated licensing provision for Payment Initiation Service Providers (PISPs), signaling a move toward open-banking-style services but not yet in force.

Buy Now, Pay Later has no specific legislation in Bangladesh; it operates under general consumer-protection, financial-services and e-commerce rules, with future credit services envisaged via the proposed PISP framework rather than a current dedicated regime.

Bangladesh Bank opened digital-bank licensing; following the first round (with 52 applicants and initial approvals including a Nagad-led and a bKash-led entity), the window reopened with revised guidelines (issued 25 Aug) raising paid-up capital to Tk 300 crore and tightening fit-and-proper tests.