Afrobility: Africa Tech and Business

#29: bKash - How the FinTech payments platform became Bangladesh’s largest tech company

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Overview: Today we’re going to talk about bKash - The largest Fintech player in Bangladesh. We start with some background on Bangladesh, discuss bKash’s founding, growth & impact on Bangladesh's economy. We also discuss what other emerging markets can learn from the bKash story & end with our overall outlook. This episode was co-hosted with Shammi Quddus & recorded on May 16, 2021.


Companies discussed: bKash, CellBazaar, Money in Motion, Grameenphone, Grameen Bank, BRAC, BRAC Bank, Safaricom (M-Pesa), Nagad, Telenor, Gates Foundation, IFC (World Bank) & Alibaba (Ant Financial)


Business concepts discussed: Agency banking, ecosystem partnerships, microfinance expansion, Nonprofit fundraising, impact investing, Telco distribution & serial entrepreneurship


Conversation highlights:

  • (00:30) - Why are we talking about bKash and Bangladesh FinTech
  • (04:40) - Bangladesh context and similarities to African countries
  • (14:50) - Fintech context in Bangladesh before bKash in 2011
  • (16:20) - Founder background - Kamal Quadir background, CellBazaar
  • (22:05) - bKash background - Iqbal Quadir, Grameenphone, etc.
  • (30:48) - bKash founding
  • (47:18) - Fundraising - IFC , BMGF, Ant Financial
  • (59:30) - Product & monetization strategy
  • (1:22:22) - Impact of bKash on the tech sector and economy
  • (1:23:56) - Bankole’s overall thoughts and outlook
  • (1:36:26) - Olumide’s overall thoughts and outlook
  • (1:42:20) - Shammi’s overall thoughts and outlook
  • (1:50:41) - Recommendations and small wins


    • Olumide’s recommendations & small wins:

    • Recommendation: Indistractable: How to Control Your Attention and Choose Your Life (by Nir Eyal) & Seeking Wisdom: From Darwin to Munger (by Peter Bevelin)
    • Small win: Dinner with friends with a live band. Some chatting, some drinking & some dancing. Marvelous!


      • Bankole’s recommendations & small wins:

      • Recommendation: Prescription Drug Commercials - why they are the way they are by Packy McCormick and Nikhil Krishnan
      • Small win: Spending a week in New York
      • Other content: M-Pesa rate card, FT Partners


        • Shammi’s recommendations & small wins:

        • Recommendation: Fintech podcast 11fs.com/podcast
        • Small win: Got my COVID vaccine! Vaccines for the win!
        • Other content: Bangladesh Bank MFS guidelines, bKash gives a boost to the poor


          • We’d love to hear from you. Please email [email protected] to share feedback or propose topics you’d like to hear.


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          Afrobility: Africa Tech and BusinessBy Olumide Ogunsanwo and Bankole Makanju
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