Mahmudul Hasan

Although higher consumer prices have persisted in the first few months of the current fiscal year, inflation in Bangladesh is going to cool in the later part of 2023-24 thanks to one external and two domestic factors, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) forecast yesterday.

There is no compelling reason to reduce the number of internet packages to 40 or discontinue three-day and seven-day packages and such a move would restrict customer choice, said a top official of a mobile operator. 

The scale of the immediate but devastating effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on Bangladesh’s economy emerged for the first time after the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) published the quarterly data of the GDP to meet IMF’s conditions.

Feature phone production has more than doubled month-on-month in July as consumers turn to more affordable alternatives to smartphones amid sustained high inflation.

The primary role of bKash involves continuous efforts to promote digital literacy and educate individuals about the benefits of digital financial products. And with this, bKash plays a significant role in the digitalisation of Bangladesh. 

At a time when the government is pressing full steam ahead with the ‘Smart Bangladesh’ agenda, the telecom regulator is taking measures that are at odds with it.

IT exports from Bangladesh have fallen for the first time in five years, which is an ominous sign for the government’s export diversification efforts as the country is failing to produce big IT firms.

The mobile subscriber base in Bangladesh continues to grow as network operators in the country acquired a total of about 14 lakh customers in July, registering the biggest monthly jump in over a year.

No government agency is taking responsibility for the MTFE scam that has left thousands of Bangladeshis staring at catastrophic losses due to the murky nature of its operations.

The internet regulator in Bangladesh is amending a guideline in order to double the duration of storing user data and network usage records by internet service providers (ISPs).

The insurance regulator of Bangladesh has finalised a framework enabling tech startups to innovate insurance policies, their distribution and other related tasks.

Around 1.6 lakh customers have so far taken the loan

Transactions through cards hit an all-time high in June thanks to increased economic activities during Eid-ul-Azha as consumers enthusiastically embraced the spirit of the occasion by making purchases.

In 2011 when mobile financial service (MFS) was introduced in Bangladesh, 27 banks took the approval from the central bank as many had correctly predicted an impending boom in mobile banking amid rising usage of cell phones. 

Mobile network operator Banglalink has decided to apply for a digital banking licence as it looks to leverage its vast pool of customers to serve a population increasingly using technologies to make and receive payments.

SpaceX has expressed its intention to launch a satellite internet service called Starlink in Bangladesh as officials of the US-based company founded by Elon Musk yesterday met with two government entities to this end.

SpaceX's Starlink may sign a deal with ICT division

The grim scenario of the mobile manufacturing industry in Bangladesh continues to persist as local production plunged by half in the first six months of 2023, primarily due to the expanding grey market. 

Experts say

Calls, social networking and news consumption dominate internet usage in Bangladesh amidst a scarcity of local and Bangla content.