Bangladesh turns on person-to-person QR payments in push for 75% cashless by 2027

Bangladesh switched on person-to-person payments through Bangla QR on Sunday, letting users send money by scanning a code instead of typing a recipient's mobile or account number. The central bank had told banks, mobile financial service providers, payment service providers and payment system operators to build the feature into their apps by 31 October.

Bangladesh Bank officials said the facility should cut reliance on cash in everyday transactions and widen the use of digital payments. "The initiative is also expected to make the country's payment system more inclusive while playing an important role in promoting cashless transactions," they said, according to Token Times.

The interoperable QR settlement system, introduced by the central bank in 2023, was designed to improve transparency, reduce risks, lower transaction costs and speed up digital payments. The P2P addition extends it from merchant payments to transfers between individuals.

The feature sits inside a broader government target of making 75 percent of transactions cashless by 2027. Authorities have already made QR payment facilities mandatory for obtaining or renewing trade licences, and banks, MFS providers, PSPs and PSOs were required to replace their proprietary merchant QR codes with Bangla QR by 30 June this year.

For a market where mobile financial services already carry a large share of small-value payments, the change shifts the QR network from a checkout tool into a person-to-person rail, putting it in more direct competition with cash handovers and traditional account-to-account transfers.