IT freelancers can now bring remittance through MFS

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Dhaka, Feb 10, 2021 (BSS) – Bangladesh Bank today allowed mobile
financial service (MFS) providers to bring remittance in order to
facilitate freelance workers.

Only banks were earlier allowed to provide such remittance services,
but MFS providers are now permitted to cater the services to people
engaged with export of IT related services, according to a central
bank notice.

The central bank set a number of criteria for MFS providers to roll
out the service, which will give benefit to freelancers, software
exporters and other services under the IT sector.

MFS providers will have to ink agreements with the internationally
recognised foreign payment service providers (PSPs) like online
payment gateway service providers (OPGSPs) and digital wallet
providers.

A PSP offers online services for accepting electronic payments by a
variety of payment methods including credit card, bank-based payments
such as direct debit, bank transfer, and real-time bank transfer based
on online banking.

This means the foreign importers will allow sending money through
the foreign fintech to the country’s MFS providers.

In another move on the same day, Bangladesh Bank has allowed banks
to extend transaction facilities to incoming tourists or passengers
who bring money in their digital wallets.

Under the policy, banks will have to make an agreement with the
foreign PSPs engaging with catering digital wallet services.

Under the above arrangement, banks will purchase foreign currency
from digital wallets of incoming tourists and passengers by making
payments in equivalent taka in cash or issuance of one time prepaid
cards in taka during their stay in Bangladesh.

Besides, the foreigners will be allowed to use the prepaid cards at
the point of sale (POS) terminals while purchasing products from shops
in the country.