DHAKA, BD / ACCESS Newswire / December 13, 2025 / bKash, a mobile money platform in Bangladesh, is empowering women by providing access to financial services like remittances, digital loans, and savings tools. With over 82 million users, bKash enhances women’s economic independence, enabling them to manage finances and pursue entrepreneurial opportunities.
Mobile money platform bKash is transforming financial inclusion in Bangladesh, empowering women with access to banking tools and opportunities for economic independence.
From the quiet corners of rural communities to the dynamic pulse of major cities, a silent yet profound financial revolution is underway in Bangladesh, thanks to the simple financial tools accessible through mobile money platforms. Globally, the digital transformation of economic activities has been instrumental in promoting financial inclusion, particularly benefiting women by dismantling historic hurdles to their entry into the formal economy.
In Bangladesh, this digital shift is spearheaded by a mobile money platform ‘bKash’, which has become the go-to app for millions, offering a range of paperless financial services with much sought after convenience in daily transactions. As per 2025, the company is serving over 82 million verified customers.
Breaking Barriers: Why Mobile Money Matters for Women
Historically, Bangladeshi women, especially in rural areas, were excluded from formal financial systems. However, mobile financial services (MFS) are changing this, with over 43% of MFS accounts owned by women, 54% of whom live in rural areas (Bangladesh Bank, August 2025). This was also reflected in the financial inclusion data updated by the Global Findex Database 2025, a flagship publication by the World Bank Group. It showed that account ownership with the formal financial system in Bangladesh jumped to 43 percent in 2024 from 32 percent a decade earlier.(3). With MFS access, women now manage their finances, make independent decisions, and pursue business opportunities, enhancing their roles in family and community development.
Financial tools that empowering women:
bKash, the largest MFS in Bangladesh, was founded in February 2010 with simple products like P2P fund transfer, mobile recharge, cash in (deposit) and cash out (withdrawal). Later on, apart from its own products, bKash has partnered with banks, financial institutions, government and private organisations to offer an array of financial tools to its customers.
Women, especially in rural areas, are increasingly using bKash as they can open accounts via e-KYC, pay utility bills and recharge mobile phones from home, receive remittances, get safety net allowances and education stipends, etc. Meanwhile, bKash designed its products in a way that can be used by underprivileged people, even rural women with low financial literacy.
Let’s see the tools that enable women towards financial freedom:
Domestic and international remittance: bKash’s inward remittance service allows millions of expatriate Bangladeshis, predominantly men, from over 140 countries to send remittances instantly to the bKash accounts of their loved ones, typically to wife and mother. To process that remittance in real time, bKash partnered with over 100 international money transfer operators (MTOs) and 25 local commercial banks (5). Besides, women living outside cities, also receive domestic remittances from male counterparts working in big cities, enabling them to manage household finances, save, and even invest in small ventures.
Digital Payroll Solution: Wage disbursement through bKash’s ‘Digital Payroll’ solution in readymade garment (RMG) sector, the country’s largest export earner and a major source of employment, have been saving valuable workhour of workers as well as reduce the cost of cash for factories. Currently, over a thousand factories disburse wages of about a million workers through bKash’s payroll solution, at the same time, assisting them to get habituated in a cashless lifestyle with increased control over their hard-earned money.
Connectivity with microfinance institutions (MFIs): bKash has automated the process of loan repayment and savings deposit of MFIs that saves commute time and cost for clients, of which majority are rural women. Currently, over 32 million clients of 64 MFIs can pay loan instalments and deposit savings by tapping the ‘microfinance’ icon from the bKash app or by dialling USSD code *247#.(4)
Savings and Credit: Building Financial Resilience
Referring to lower penetration of traditional banking, a recent report titled “Bangladesh: Country Private Sector Diagnostic” (6) published by IFC recommended MFS providers to introduce digital finance products and services such as savings, loans, investment and insurance. However, bKash has already introduced such products in its platform.
DPS (Deposit Pension Schemes): bKash has partnered with four commercial banks and a financial institution to facilitate customers to open weekly and monthly DPS conveniently. bKash enabled its users to save as little as BDT 250 (equivalent of US$ 2) per week to Tk 20,000 ($ 164) per month.(7) As we approach the end of 2025, customers opened over 5.0 million** DPS through bKash platform, remarkably, 30% of the DPS subscribers in bKash’s platform are women, indicating a growing culture of financial planning among female users using technology.
Collateral-free Digital Loan: Meanwhile, bKash partnered with a top commercial bank to roll out collateral-free digital micro loans for selected customers based on artificial intelligence (AI) credit ratings. The loan ranging from Tk 500 ($4) to Tk 50,000 ($410) is repayable in three or six months.(8) This type of loan is quite suitable for individuals, especially for women, who can’t access formal banking channels for not having proper documentation. Up till now, bKash processed about 10 million** such loans in its platform.
Entrepreneurship from the Comfort of Home
Many women with entrepreneurial ambitions now have the opportunity to start businesses from home, thanks to bKash. This mobile app allows them to manage finances, receive payments, and even secure loans using their bKash account statements. Whether selling homemade goods, handicrafts, or running small retail operations, bKash enables seamless transactions, empowering women-led businesses and boosting rural economies and national growth.
Evidence Speaks: Research Validates the Impact of MFS
A study titled “Impact of Mobile Financial Services in Bangladesh – The case of bKash” by the Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies (BIDS),(6) an autonomous multi-disciplinary public research organisation, found a strong correlation between MFS usage and women empowerment. Women who use bKash reported: 14% increase in wealth ownership
Participation in income-generating activities increased by 9%
Spend more on health and education
Enjoy greater freedom of movement
Actively participate in household financial decisions
Ownership of assets and jewelry
20% more likely to control financial resources.
Conclusion
In every transaction, there is a story: A story of a mother securing her child’s future, a daughter supporting her family, a wife becoming a partner in financial decisions. When women are given equal opportunities in education, workforce, leadership, and financial freedom, the benefits extend to the society as a whole. In that space, bKash becomes a catalyst for change by placing the power of money into the hands of everybody, irrespective of their identity and geographical location. In doing so, the company is not just empowering individuals-it is reshaping the socio-economic fabric of Bangladesh, creating stories in every transaction.
References:
1. https://www.bkash.com/en/about
2. https://www.bb.org.bd/en/index.php/econdata/index
3. ttps://www.worldbank.org/en/publication/globalfindex
6. https://www.ifc.org/content/dam/ifc/doc/2025/bangladesh-country-private-sector-diagnostic-en.pdf
8. https://journalwjaets.com/sites/default/files/fulltext_pdf/WJAETS-2025-1290.pdf
Media Contact
bKash Limited
Shamsuddin Haider Dalim
EVP, HoD, Corporate Communications, Communications, bKash
Email: corp.communications@bkash.com
Website: bKash
SOURCE: bKash
View the original press release on ACCESS Newswire
In an era where the music industry often shines its brightest lights on viral fame,…
HAINAN, CN / ACCESS Newswire / December 13, 2025 / At the 6th Symposium on…
IRAEmpire has ranked the best gold investment companies in the US based on customer reviews,…
BEVERLY HILLS, CA / ACCESS Newswire / December 12, 2025 / On Thursday, December 11th,…
VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESS Newswire / December 12, 2025 / Battery X Metals Inc. (CSE:BATX)(OTCQB:BATXF)(FSE:5YW0,…
The Initiative Aims to Address the Pain Points of Family Filmmaking BEIJING, Dec. 13, 2025 /PRNewswire/…
