bKash

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“Measuring Consumers’ Attitudes towards Mobile Financial
Service: A Case Study on bKash”
Eastern University

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“Measuring Consumers’ Attitudes towards Mobile Financial Service: A
Study on bKash”
Business Research Methods
Course Code: BUS 302
Submitted TO
Md. Moniruzzaman Khan
Assistant Professor
Faculty of Business Administration
Eastern University
Submitted BY
Rabiul Alam Hamon
ID: 133200064
Section: 03
Batch: 33
Date of Submission: 27 July, 2016

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Table of Content
No Contents Page No
Chapter 1 Introductory Part 8-12
1.1 Introduction 8-9
1.2 Rationale of the study 9-10
1.3 Objective of the study
1.3.1 Broad objective 10
1.3.2 Specific objective 10-11
1.4 Scope of the study 11
1.5 Limitation of the study 11
1.6 Information Needed & Sources 12
1.7 Methodology
1.7.1 Research Technique 12
1.7.2 Population 12
1.7.3 Sampling Frame 12
1.7.4 Sampling Technique 12
1.7.5 Sampling Size 12
1.7.6 Questionnaire Design 12
1.7.7 Fieldwork & Data collection 12
Chapter 2 Mobile Finance Service in Bangladesh 14-19
2.1 Background of the Bangladesh Financial Sector 14-15
2.2 Regulation of Mobile Finance Service 15-16
2.3 Market Development of Mobile Finance Service 16-17
2.4 Key Players of the Market 18-9
Chapter 3 Overview of bKash 21-22
3.1 Company profile 21
3.2 Mission of bKash 21
3.3 Primary value offered in market 21-22
Chapter 4 Conclusion 24
4.1 Conclusion 24

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27 July, 2016
Md. Moniruzzaman Khan
Assistant Professor
Faculty of Business
Administration
Eastern University
Subject: Submission of theses report on “Measuring Consumers’ Attitudes towards Mobile
Financial Service: A Study on bKash”
Dear Sir,
With due respect, it is great pleasure to me to submit my theses research titled, “Measuring
Consumers’ Attitudes towards Mobile Financial Service: A Study on bKash” is based on a
qualitative research. This project gave me both academic and practical exposures and help
understanding the Mobile Financial Services from the core.
I am highly obliged to you for your valuable guidance and constant attention on me and when
required in accomplishing this research. I shall be highly obliged if you are kind enough to approve
this research and provide your valuable judgment.
Though I have tried my level best to make it authentic and worth reading that the report may
have some mistakes and that are unintentional. I hope that the research will meet your expectation.
I shall be pleased to answer any sort of query you think necessary as now and when required. I
would like to give you thank for giving me the authorization to prepare this research.
Sincerely Yours,
-------------------------------
Rabiul Alam Hamon
ID: 133200064
Section: 03
Eastern University

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Acknowledgement
While the writing of this report has been difficult, the preparation for writing has been even harder.
It certainly would not have been possible without the help of many people. I would like to express
my gratitude to all the people that were involved both directly and indirectly in the preparation of
this research.
First of all, thanks to merciful and almighty Allah for help me to accomplish this research. Then,
I would like to take the opportunity to thank, Md. Moniruzzaman Khan, Assistant Professor,
Faculty of Business Administration, Eastern University. His guidance in choosing the topic of the
research helped me immensely and helped me to stay on the right track. More specifically, I would
like to thank him for imparting his time and wisdom.
Finally, I would like to thank my friends and family members who gave me mental support to
complete my research successfully.

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Abstract
This Paper demonstrates customer attitude towards bKash which is Bangladesh’s first complete
mobile financial service provider. bKash is the country’s first mobile banking concept that is
inaugurated to facilitate all kinds of people in Bangladesh in the transaction of money without
creating any type of complexity. I found out both the customer satisfaction and dissatisfaction
towards bKash throughout our analysis. I had randomly selected 30 customers bKash to conduct
our survey. At first I measured the customer satisfaction level but when I started to search about
this topic I found that there is not only satisfaction but also dissatisfaction. Both current attitudes
and new forward-looking intentions of customers I measured to gather knowledge about the
attitudes of potential and existing customers towards bKash significantly. Geographical scope
had a very strong external validity to the findings of our analysis.

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1.1 Introduction:
Earlier this century, the mobile phone became the first communications technology to have more
users in developing countries like Bangladesh. The escalation and convergence of wireless
telecommunications has created a tremendous potential platform for providing business services.
It's estimated that mobile phone users are approaching the seven billion mobile subscriptions
mark globally, and business and operators alike are keenly aware of the opportunity to connect
with potential consumers through mobile phones (Mobi Forge, 2014). Technology has become
an increasingly vital element in the competitive landscape of the financial services industry.
Banking today is undergoing a radical transformation. The symptoms are obvious; new products,
new players, new channels are appearing daily. This transformation is taking place across all
sectors of the banking industry. Technology is a major force in this radical transformation that
led to breaking the geographical, legal and industrial barriers and has created new products and
services. Banking through mobile phone has been common in developed countries for years. The
real potential of “m-banking” may be to make basic financial services more accessible to
millions of poor people.
Mobile Financial Service (MFS) is a method to offer financial services which integrate banking
with mobile wireless networks that makes enable users for executing banking transactions. It
indicates the ability to make deposits, withdraw, and to send or receive money from a mobile
account and habitually such services are enables by the use of bank agents which permit mobile
account holders to transact at independent agent locations outside of bank branches (Bangladesh
Bank, 2012). Mobile phone has turned into a device for daily usage which generates an opportunity
for the development of banking services for the unbanked people who have access to a cell phone
with the help of mobile phone banking. The remarkable progression of mobile sector all over
the world has made an exclusive chance for delivering financial as well as social services through
mobile network (Kabir, 2013, pp.96 – 114).
Bangladesh Bank has introduced permissions for Mobile Financial Service on July 2011 to
promote market development. Initially five banks have responded positively to establish active
deployments where three largest of these were launched immediately at the time of launching
and others in early 2012. According to CGAP (2014), by the end of the first quarter of 2012 the
fastest early expansion has come from bKash (Brac Bank) and Dutch Bangla Bank
Limited

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(DBBL). Even though Bangladesh’s central bank has approved more than 20 licenses to offer
mobile financial services, more than 80 percent of transactions are through a single company—
bKash Limited. bKash launched in the second half of 2011, grew to 3 million accounts by the
end of 2012, and shot up to 11 million registered accounts by the end of 2013. According to BTRC
(September, 2014) the mobile phone subscribers in Bangladesh are 118.493 million and
71.9% people are living in low banking coverage are in rural (Bangladesh Bank). So, enormous
opportunities are waiting for the banking industry of Bangladesh in the platform of mobile banking
service.
Consumer attitudes are both an obstacle and an advantage to a marketer. Choosing to discount or
ignore consumers’ attitudes of a particular product or service—while developing a marketing
strategy—guarantees limited success of a campaign. This research aims to investigate the
consumers’ attitude toward mobile banking especially on bKash Limited, the largest player of
the market. This study will be a practicable one for those who want to do research further about
Mobile Financial Service in Bangladesh as well as feasible one for the actual and potential
customers of Mobile Financial Service. It will also be an important one for the government when
the government will need information about Mobile Financial Service.
1.2 Rationale of the Study:
There are around 160 million people in Bangladesh, of which only 13 percent have bank accounts
whereas more than 90 percent are mobile phone users. More than 70% of the population of
Bangladesh lives in rural areas where access to formal financial services is difficult. Yet
these are the people who are in most need of such services, either for receiving funds from
loved ones in distant locations, or to access financial tools to improve their economic condition.
Less than 15% of Bangladeshis are connected to the formal banking system whereas over 90% has
mobile phones (bKash Limited, 2014). These phones are not merely devices for talking, but can
be used for more useful and sophisticated processing tasks. bKash was conceived primarily to
utilize these mobile devices and the omnipresent telecom networks to extend financial
services in a secure manner to the under-served remote population of Bangladesh.
The use of mobile devices for conducting banking transactions and accessing other financial
information is an emerging service that has yet to be widely adopted by mobile users. Analyzing
the consumers’ attitude toward mobile banking reveals a large and heterogeneous
picture. It is

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imperative for marketers to understand attributes leading to the adoption of or resistance to the
adoption of mobile banking services. As current market environment is going to be more
competitive, to stay and run a business in this competitive market, marketers have to take more
strategies for attracting customers to their business by creating better facilities and attractive
services. In this study I tried to measures the consumers’ attitudes towards mobile financial service
especially on bKash Limited.
1.3 Objective of the Study:
1.3.1 Broad Objective:
i. To give an overview of Mobile Financial Service (MFS) industry in
Bangladesh;
1.3.2 Specific Objectives:
i. To figure out the demographic characteristics of mobile financial
service use

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ii.To give an overview about cost, usage and all other benefits of Mobile
Financial Service as well as to produce a scenario of MFS in Bangladesh.
iii. To evaluate the performance of bKash;
iv. To determine the factors that help bKash fast drive in the market;
v. To determine the factors that influence consumers’ in adopting
MFS;
1.4 Scope of the Study:
Although the operational activity of bKash is huge, I develop my report based on Motijheel and
Chakaria only. I have selected 25 bKash points in Motijheel from where people get bKash service.
I discussed with many rural people in Chakaria about bKash to understand their perception and
attitude toward bKash. I provided respondents with survey questionnaires and assisted them to
understand the statements. On the basis of this, I develop my report.
1.5 Limitations of the Study:
The sample size of this study was not necessarily representative of the Bangladeshi population as
a whole as it ignored large rural population. Secondly, the generalizability of this research may
be impacted by fact that the sample’s is skewed towards males. This may be due to general
tendency of Bangladesh culture to do outside tasks by maximum males. In addition, this research
only explores the factors to influence motivators and inhibitors on behavioral intentions. In terms
of future research, a large scale study with more representative sample could be conducted to
validate the factors of this study and to enhance the generalizability of the research conclusions.

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1.6 Information Needed and Sources:
Data has been collected from various sources there is a combination of both primary and
secondary data that has been used in this research. Secondary data are collected from related
studies done in present timeline and primary data are collected from the survey. Different
journals, books, internet and reports of the banks have been used as the important sources of
secondary data.
1.7 Methodology:
1.7.1 Research Technique: I designed this study in descriptive format. The study is developed
in qualitative point of view. I collected information by conducting a survey and related
survey data to measure consumers’ attitude towards mobile financial service.
1.7.2 Population: Users of Mobile Financial Service is the population of this study.
1.7.3 Sampling Frame: As I prepare my report on the basis of bKash point of Motijheel area,
so the sample size is limited to this area only.
1.7.4 Sampling Technique: I used convenience sampling technique with random respondents
for sampling. I accessed my nearest mobile banking service agents’ locations and
conducted survey on the customers who came to take the service.
1.7.5 Sample Size: I conducted my survey on 30 respondents.
1.7.6 Questionnaire Design: The questions in the questionnaire were based on review of
literatures and the specific characteristics of Bangladeshi people & market context. The
specific characteristics represented different services and facilities provided by the MFS
institutions and expected by the MFS consumers of Bangladesh. The questionnaire was
translated into Bengali language to make clear and simple to understand by every
respondent. The items in the questionnaire were constructed based on the consumer attitude
and acceptance of mobile financial services.
1.7.7 Fieldwork and Data Collection: The field study was carried out in June 2016 using
empirical data. The sample size decisions were primarily based on cost considerations
and in line with studies on consumer attitude and acceptance of mobile banking. A total
of 40 respondents from Motijheel, were collected randomly at the time of transaction from
M-Banking agent stores through interview. Respondents verbally replied to a structured
questionnaire and their answers were recorded accordingly by the interviewers.

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CHAPTER 2
MOBILE FINANCIAL SERVICES IN
BANGLADESH

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2.1 Background on The Bangladesh Financial Sector:
Bangladesh is the 8th largest populated country in the world with around 161 million
populations. In Bangladesh, almost 31.5% populations are living under poverty (CIA, 2013). From
this huge population only 13% people have bank account (Bangladesh Bank, 2014).
Agriculture generates over 17% of GDP, and has become increasingly important as policy
makers grapple with climate change and spikes in global and domestic food prices (CIA, 2013).
Simultaneously, there is a shift underway to transition from subsistence to commercial
agriculture. Bangladesh’s financial architecture started developing within public sector
institutions established at the time of Bangladesh’s independence. According to Bangladesh
Bank (2015), after the independence, banking industry in Bangladesh started its journey with 6
nationalized commercialized banks, 2 State owned specialized banks and 3 Foreign Banks. In the
1980's banking industry achieved significant expansion with the entrance of private banks. Over
the last thirty years several new generations of private banks have entered and today make up
about one‐half of banking assets. Bangladesh has been a global leader in financial inclusion,
building some of the original and still largest microfinance institutions (MFIs). In addition to 4
state owned commercial bank, Bangladesh’s financial sector consists of 39 domestic commercial
banks, 9 foreign banks, 11 government‐owned specialized (development) banks, and 33 non
bank finance institutions (Bangladesh Bank, 2015). The Banking Sector has responded to the
agricultural needs, with increased products (notably cards and green financing) to support
development of agriculture (and sustainable agriculture). It creates an opportunity to examine
mobile channel applications. According to Bangladesh MICROCREDIT REGULATORY
AUTHORITY (2014), the MFI sector continues to grow, but with slower uptake amongst
women entrepreneurs and increasing uptake with SMEs – demonstrating market saturation in one
area, and market diversification in another. The combination of a large microfinance market and
a growing banking system has led to significant progress on financial inclusion. Where Bangladesh
is well ahead on credit with 23.3% of adults gaining access to credit, more than double the global
average for low income countries. Bangladesh’s overall access to accounts for adults (age 15 or
over) of nearly 40% compares favorably with South Asia’s average of 33% and the low‐income
country average of 27%. In terms of number of savings accounts at formal

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institutions, Bangladesh’s progress is higher than the global and regional average. Only 1.2% in
Bangladesh receive payments over the mobile phone whereas average in low income countries is
closer to 9.1%. (World Bank, 2012)
However, the financial sector has been somewhat stressed as banks have demonstrated instability
over the last few years. Bangladesh failed to meet its 7% growth target in 2014, though it is
intended to surpass 7% in 2015. Recent bank policies are targeting financial inclusion to build
and extend wealth. This includes new Mobile Financial Service Guidelines (2011). This is
catalyzing banking innovation, and it is supported by donors to build new scalable platforms, e.g.
bKash. Given the need to continue to advance financial inclusion Bangladesh Bank believes that
fully developed MFS operations can reduce barriers of physical access and cost and over time
enable a much higher proportion of the population to use basic formal sector deposit and
payment services. Access into the formal system might eventually lead to product innovations in
insurance, credit, pensions and government payments that reach many millions of Bangladeshis.
2.2 Regulation of Mobile Financial Service:
Following several years of deliberations and ad hoc permissions on MFS, the Department of
Currency Management and Payment Systems of Bangladesh Bank issued “Guidelines on Mobile
Financial Services (MFS) for the Banks” on 22 September 2011 which were subsequently
amended on 20 December 2011. These guidelines state that only a bank‐led model will be
permitted. For Bangladesh Bank this means that a customer’s account, termed "Mobile
Account", will rest with the bank and will be accessible through the customer’s mobile device.
This mobile account will be a non‐chequing account classified separately from a standard
banking account. The guidelines permit the following services, subject to specific bank proposals
to and clearances by Bangladesh Bank:
1) Disbursement of inward foreign remittances
2) Cash in/out using mobile account through agents/Bank branches/ATMs/MNO’s
outlets
3) Person to Business Payments (utility bill payments or merchant payments)

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4) Business to Person Payments (salary disbursement, dividend and refund warrant
payments, vendor payments)
5) Government to Person Payments (elderly allowances, freedom‐fighter allowances,
subsidies)
6) Person to Government Payments (taxes, levy payments)
7) Person to Person Payments P2P (One registered mobile account to another
registered mobile account)
8) Other Payments (microfinance, overdraft facility, insurance premiums, deposit
pension scheme deposits)
Bangladesh Bank has established limits on P2P transactions of taka 10,000 per day and 25,000
per month. These amounts are subject to change from time to time at the discretion of
Bangladesh Bank. Following the initial guidelines, Bangladesh Bank also issued an update to the
guidelines with some modifications on 20 December 2011. These modifications clarified that the
bank bears responsibility for know‐your‐customer (KYC) practices. It restricts P2P payments
between holders of registered mobile accounts thereby restricting the use of services in which the
recipient cashes out a payment without opening a mobile account. Twenty eight banks have been
granted permission to introduce MFS by Bangladesh Bank. Nineteen banks have launched MFS
and of these five are licensed to offer a range of service beyond inward foreign remittances.
(Bangladesh Bank, 2015)
A holistic view of the MFS status as of December 2014 are given in the table below-
No. of Banks permitted : 28
Started MFS operation : 19
Registered customers : 25.18 million
Agents : 5,40,984
TABLE 1: HOLISTIC VIEW OF THE MFS STATUS
2.3 Market Development of Mobile Financial Service:
The second half of 2011 marked an important turning point in MFS for Bangladesh. Earlier ad hoc
permissions from Bangladesh Bank were replaced with a set of guidelines providing the regulatory
certainty critical to promote market development. Providers have responded positively

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with five banks establishing active deployments. The three largest of these were launched in
2011 and early 2012 just as the Bangladesh Bank’s guidelines were being finalized and made
public. By the end of the first quarter 2012 the fastest early expansion has come from BRAC
Bank/bKash and DBBL that have the largest numbers of registered customers and agents. These
two players have also each signed up 3 and 4 MNO partners respectively. Bank Asia is notable in
that it offers an alternative mobile phone technology which does not require MNO agreements
and instead enables transactions over Smartphone using internet based applications. The
deployments that focus on establishing mobile accounts and basic P2P services have grown the
fastest so far. Earlier licenses offered to banks and their MNO partners solely for inward foreign
remittances have not grown much– a pattern consistent with international experience. The MFS
market is at an early stage of development as the newest providers are seeking to stabilize their
technology, build out agent networks and acquire new customers. This involves a complex,
sequenced set of activities that includes: (1) finding and training agents, (2) marketing to bring
attention to the service, (3) acquiring customers using know‐your‐customer (KYC) and account
opening processes while at the same time helping new customers to begin to transact. The
deployments that are most active today are seeking to expand their customer bases during 2012.
For example, BRAC Bank/bKash and DBBL aim are aiming for multi‐fold growth during 2012
which could push their combined customer accounts to between 2 and 3 million within a year’s
time, possibly more. It is hoped that other providers entering the market might also grow and
provide more alternatives and competition. It is still early and much more will be learned about
MFS in Bangladesh over the coming year. (CGAP, 2012)

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2.4 Key Players of the Market:
bKash: bKash is a joint venture between BRAC Bank and Money In Motion LLC, USA. bKash
is a leading MFS in Bangladesh, helping BRAC expand its reach beyond its ATM network and
branches, and serving smaller rural villages. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation invested
$10 million to help build a scalable MFS platform. Because BKash has partnerships with 4
MNOs, 98% of mobile users have access to BKash. According to CGAP (2013), it has 11 million
registered with cumulative transactions of $14.8 Million. bKash has 40,000+ agents (one in almost
every 2 rural villages in Bangaldesh). The range of services provided by bKash includes Cash in/
Out, Payments, International Remittances, P2P payments, Bill Pay etc. (Bangladesh Bank, 2012)
DBBL Mobile: DBBL Mobile is the mobile financial service of Dutch Bangla Bank. It is
available on every MNO. It has 172,020 registered customers and cumulative transactions of
$11.0 Million (2011). The numbers of agents are 23,974. DBBL has notably developed
partnerships with insurance providers and employers to use its platform for distributing
payments. Services offered by DBBL Mobile are: cash-in/Out, International Remittances, Salary
Disbursement, P2P payments, Mobile top-off, Bill Pay. (Bangladesh Bank, 2012)
Trust Mobile Money: Trust Bank offers “Trust Mobile Money” a service under its Alternative
Delivery Channel group in the bank. It has been partnering with Teletalk. The cumulative
Transactions is $0.02 Million with 1104 Customers and 170 Agents (Bangladesh Bank, 2012).
Bank Asia: Bank Asia launched its MFS in the first quarter of 2012. What differentiates Bank
Asia is that its technology base is a platform called iPay that is accessible via SmartPhones. This
allows use of internet based applications for transactions. Thus, this service can be used without
relying on a channel negotiated with an MNO. Any client with a SmartPhone could potentially
use the Bank Asia service. Bank Asia’s mobile service is comprised of four parts: Reimittance,
Ektee Bari Ektee Khamar (for the ultra poor), mobile banking based on smart phones, and

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mobile banking based on smart POS (using a smart card). It has cumulative transactions of $0.01
Million. (Bangladesh Bank, 2012)
Mercantile Bank: Mercantile Bank’s MFS service has been tested and allows the agent to transact
using a Java based program over an internet enabled Smartphone. Clients are however free to use
any phone and transact over an IVR driven menu based service. Mercantile has established 148
agent locations mostly from the UISCs. Thus far Mercantile has opened 1,392 mobile accounts,
though this is mostly from within a closed group of bank staff. Its’ cumulative transactions are
$12.5 Million. The service has not been marketed heavily to outside consumers yet. (Bangladesh
Bank, 2012)

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CHAPTER 3
OVERVIEW OF bKash

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3.1 Company Profile:
bKash Limited, a subsidiary of BRAC Bank, started as a joint venture between BRAC Bank
Limited, Bangladesh and Money in Motion LLC, USA. In April 2013, International Finance
Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, became an equity partner and in April
2014, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation became the investor of the company. The ultimate
objective of bKash is to ensure access to a broader range of financial services for the people of
Bangladesh. It has a special focus to serve the low income masses of the country to achieve broader
financial inclusion by providing services that are convenient, affordable and reliable. (bKash,
2014)
3.2 Mission of bKash:
By providing financial services that are convenient, affordable and reliable, bKash aims to widen
the net of financial inclusion. bKash wants to provide a solution for Mobile Financial Services,
built on a highly scalable Mobile Money platform, allowing the people of Bangladesh to safely
send and receive money via mobile devices. (bKash, 2014)
3.3 Primary Values Offered in Market:
i. Fast: bKash is dedicated to widening the net of financial inclusion among the people of
Bangladesh by facilitating money transfer through mobile phones. bKash provides
Mobile Financial Services allowing customers to send, receive, and pay money from their
mobile phones in the fastest way.
ii. Affordable: bKash helps to send and receive money with minimal effort and cost. bKash
provides the highest benefits to its customers at an affordable cost, enabling everyone to
access the formal financial system of the economy. In addition to eliminating initial
monetary costs involved in entering the banking system, bKash greatly minimizes
opportunity costs such as time and effort required to access such services. The service
charges are minimal and there are no hidden costs involved.
iii. Secure: bKash places a high priority on protecting customer information to assure that
their transactions and data are secure with bKash. bKash’s security and compliance
practices are regularly audited to ensure that they meet the highest standards.

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iv. Convenient: bKash users enjoy increased convenience of accessing their finances from
their own mobile phones anytime, anywhere. bKash gives you the flexibility to perform
transactions 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, regardless of time and place. "No queues no
waiting"; the most convenient way of transferring money.
v. Nationwide: bKash’s extensive distribution network with more than 100,000 Agents
covering each district and Thana along with around 300 BRAC Bank ATMs provides
customers with the nationwide reach and capacity that customers need to avail bKash
services at a close proximity. The service is supported by mobile networks of all the leading
MNOs which enable customers to access bKash Wallet even from the remotest areas of
Bangladesh.

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4.1 Conclusion:
Mobile Financial Service is very new to Bangladeshi consumers and it is still at early stages in
Bangladesh. bKash’s initial growth to large scale has been among the fastest globally. At the
same time, it is still early. The bKash board and management are the first to say that there is a long
way to go and much still to do to build the business. It needs to stabilize its technology platform
to support a much higher volume of transactions. It needs to shift users from doing their
transactions via agents to using their own accounts. It also needs to move beyond payments to
provide other financial services. This research has served to enhance the understanding of the
consumers’ attitudes towards mobile banking in the context of Bangladesh. This study has also
explored the reasons behind bKash fast drive in the market. It will help the government policy
makers, m-banking service providers and practitioners in the field of Mobile Financial Service.

bKash

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