For seven years, Mahmudul Hasan Nayeem relied on his bKash merchant account to process digital payments at Nayeem Collection, his shop in the busy Kapasia Bazar of Gazipur. Yet, without an expensive point-of-sale (POS) machine, accepting payments directly from traditional bank apps remained out of reach for him.
That barrier has now disappeared with a simple, interoperable square placed on his counter: the Bangla QR.
“Now that bKash has installed the Bangla QR, we can accept payments from other banks and mobile banking platforms as well,” Nayeem said. “This has been incredibly convenient for us. Now, with just one QR code, we can receive payments from all institutions, making it much easier to keep track of our daily sales at the end of the day.”
Nayeem’s experience highlights a quiet but monumental shift in Bangladesh’s retail payment landscape as bKash, the country’s largest mobile financial service (MFS) provider, has successfully deployed Bangla QR at nearly 8 lakh merchants across the country, marking the highest number of interoperable Bangla QR deployments.
The massive deployment drive aligns with Bangladesh Bank’s mandate to create a unified, interoperable digital payment ecosystem and was completed in line with the central bank’s directives.
Transactions across the bKash-deployed Bangla QR network have reached around Tk200 crore per day, covering neighbourhood groceries, leading lifestyle retailers, superstores and other merchant categories.
For merchants, the interoperability of Bangla QR is considered a gamechanger. Instead of maintaining multiple payment acceptance channels, businesses can use a single QR code to receive payments from banks, MFS providers and payment service providers, reducing operational complexity and expanding access to digital transactions.
One QR, wider access
Abu Saeed Rony, manager of MN Fashion in Kumarpara of Sylhet metropolitan area, said the upgrade has streamlined payment operations for the business.
“We used to receive a number of payments through bKash every day. Now that bKash has installed the Bangla QR, we can also seamlessly accept payments from other financial institutions using the exact same QR,” he said.
“We hope transactions through the QR will attract more customers to go cashless in the coming days.”
For bKash, the transition to interoperable Bangla QR represents a major step towards financial inclusion and the democratisation of technology in Bangladesh.
Ali Ahmmed, Chief Commercial Officer of bKash, said customers of banks, MFS and payment service providers can now make cashless transactions seamlessly by scanning a single QR code nationwide through their preferred platforms.
According to Ali Ahmmed, the initiative reduces the risks of carrying cash, simplifies merchant operations and creates digital records that strengthen access to formal financial services, including credit.
These digital footprints could help address one of the most persistent challenges faced by small businesses – limited access to formal financing due to a lack of financial records.
Beyond payment acceptance
Deploying Bangla QR codes is only one part of bKash’s broader strategy to digitise the country’s payment landscape and build a comprehensive digital financial ecosystem.
To build trust and remove the friction of verifying transactions during busy business hours, bKash has introduced payment speakers for merchants, a first-of-its-kind initiative in Bangladesh.
The devices provide instant audio confirmation for successful payments, securing the transaction for merchants while offering a smooth checkout experience for customers.
bKash is also utilising the digital footprints created by QR transactions to address one of the most persistent challenges faced by small businesses: access to formal credit.
Through a pilot programme with BRAC Bank, bKash is analysing merchant transaction histories to offer instant, collateral-free, short-term digital loans directly to merchant accounts.
The initiative uses payment behaviour and transaction patterns to build digital financial profiles that can help merchants who may otherwise lack access to traditional lending channels.
Incentives to change behaviour
While expanding payment infrastructure is essential, bKash believes infrastructure alone does not change consumer behaviour – incentives are needed to drive mass adoption of Bangla QR.
To encourage wider use of digital payments, bKash has launched promotional payment campaigns across more than 45,000 merchant outlets.
Customers scanning Bangla QR through the bKash app can currently unlock cashback and discount coupons worth up to Tk10,000. The campaign will continue until 31 August 2026.
As bKash approaches its 15th anniversary, the Bangla QR initiative demonstrates how the platform continues to evolve from a peer-to-peer transfer service into a comprehensive digital financial ecosystem.
By equipping merchants with universal payment acceptance, bKash is not only changing how people pay but also fundamentally empowering the businesses that drive Bangladesh forward.
