Interoperability across all financial systems this year

The government has taken an initiative to make all accounts of banks, mobile financial services and payment system providers interoperable this year, a development that will allow people to move funds effortlessly within the financial sector on real-time and at lower costs. The new system — Interoperable Digital Transaction Platform (IDTP) — will be set up to establish the interoperability among banks, MFS operators and payment service providers (PSPs) and would give a major boost cashless transaction. The government will cough up Tk 56 crore to set up the IDTP and the central bank will govern and operate it, according to a central bank document.Transaction through MFS rose 41 per cent year-on-year to Tk 53,598 crore in November.The issuance of credit cards stood at 16.31 lakh as of October, up 8.73 per cent year-on-year. The number of debit cards grew 8.70 per cent to 2.10 crore.The central bank will set up the required hardware and software to start the new payment method in a full-fledged manner this year. A mobile app has already been developed to allow clients to register with the IDTP. Clients will complete the registration by using the mobile app of banks, PSPs and MFS providers if the firms attach the app to their internet banking and digital payment platform.Banks and MFS providers often offer discounts. Under the new system, clients will transfer money from one account to another account, which is offering the discounts, to purchase the products. There is a big gap between the clients of banks and users of MFS providers in terms of using fund in a common platform, but the new system will bring clients under a uniform payment platform

Source: https://www.thedailystar.net/business/news/interoperability-across-all-financial-systems-year-2027461

Robi tops turnover list with Tk 436cr

Robi Axiata topped the turnover list yesterday as many investors who bought a stake in the company through its initial public offering (IPO) sold off their shares, according to market players. Some Tk 436 crore worth of Robi’s shares were traded at the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), which was 20 per cent of the total turnover.When a company does not have any buyers or sellers for its stock, then the company’s trade is halted. Robi’s stock trade had been halted most of the times since its trading debut on December 24 due to a lack of sellers. The mobile operator raised Tk 524 crore from the stock market, making it the country’s biggest ever IPO. Many stocks rose 10 to 20 per cent in the last five trading days and so, investors increased their profits by selling some shares, according to a merchant banker.Meanwhile, turnover, an important indicator of the stock market, rose 6.35 per cent to Tk 2,108 crore. Among the 369 traded stocks, 56 advanced, 248 dropped and 55 remained the same at the DSE.Stocks of the engineering sector rose 1.15 per cent yesterday while mutual funds saw an increase of around 1 per cent. Non-bank financial institutions dropped 4.04 per cent and general insurance fell 2.95 per cent, according to data from UCB Capital Management.Robi Axiata traded the most followed by Beximco, LankaBangla Finance, LafargeHolcim Bangladesh. Meghna Milk shed the most, losing 9.6 per cent followed by BIFC, Emerald Oil, Tallu Spinning and Shinepukur Ceramics.The port city bourse also fell yesterday. The general index of the Chittagong Stock Exchange, CASPI dropped 249 points, or 1.45 per cent, to stand at 17,840. Of the 282 traded stocks, 51 rose, 198 fell and 33 remained unchanged.

Source: https://www.thedailystar.net/business/news/robi-tops-turnover-list-tk-436cr-2027449

Three more firms to set up plants at Hi-Tech City

Three more companies have got land allocation at the Bangabandhu Hi-Tech City in Kaliakoir of Gazipur to establish manufacturing plants. To this effect, the firms signed agreements with the Bangladesh Hi-Tech Park Authority (BHTPA) at a ceremony held at the Janata Software Technology Park in the city’s Kawran Bazar area on Tuesday. BHTPA Managing Director (MD) HosneAra Begum inked all three agreements on behalf of the Park Authority, said a press release. GoutamSaha, MD of the Excel Intelligent Solutions Limited, MdHasib Ahmed, MD of the Kinbo Smart Manufacturing Industries, and Samir Kumar Sarkar, Executive Director of the Child Health Research Foundation, inked the deals on behalf of their respective organisations. As per the investment proposals, Excel Intelligent will manufacture hi-tech security, networking, telecom, and robotics devices for some renowned international brands from a plant to be established on two acres of land. The company will invest $3.0 million, which will create employments for nearly 350 people.On the other hand, Kinbo Smart will make smart televisions, smart phones, laptops, CCTV cameras and other home appliances from its proposed plant on one acre of land with investment of $1.0 million, creating 650 employment opportunities.It will pump $8.0 million into the proposed establishment and create employment for 120 persons. With the new ones, a total of 42 technology companies got land allocation at the Bangabandhu Hi-Tech City, the BHTPA managing director said in her speech as the chief guest of the ceremony.

Source: https://today.thefinancialexpress.com.bd/stock-corporate/three-more-firms-to-set-up-plants-at-hi-tech-city-1610555719

BD to export bandwidth to Saudi Telecom

The Bangladesh Submarine Cable Company Limited (BSCCL) is set to export 600 Gbps (gigabits per second) bandwidth worth $3.6 million to the Saudi Telecom. The capacity will be transferred from the western part of the core cable of the SMW-5 submarine cable to Yanbu in Saudi Arabia through Marseille in France, BSCCL Managing Director Mashiur Rahman told the FE.The deal will help reduce the operation and maintenance cost of BSCCL on SMW-5 submarine cable, according to a company release. Bangladesh got connected with the first undersea cable, South East Asia – Middle East – Western Europe 4 (SEA-ME-WE 4), in 2006 and with the second one, SEA-ME-WE 5, in 2017. BSCCL is a core telecommunications service provider and international submarine cable operator of Bangladesh. The company emerged in July 2008 as a public limited company. The Bangladesh government has 73.84 per cent stakes in the company, institutional investors have 11.58 per cent, foreign investors 2.72 per cent and general investors 11.86 per cent stakes.

Source: https://today.thefinancialexpress.com.bd/stock-corporate/bd-to-export-bandwidth-to-saudi-telecom-1610555638