Transactions through cards maintain a steady growth in Bangladesh, indicating a positive trend towards a more digitalized and cashless financial ecosystem.
Over the past five years, both the issuance of debit, credit and prepaid cards, as well as the transaction volume has increased significantly in the country, according to Bangladesh Bank (BB).
BB data shows that issuance of debit, credit and prepaid cards has risen by 140 per cent and the total transaction volume through cards has increased by 228 per cent over the past five-year period.
The number of debit cards issued grew by 113 per cent from 19.4 million in May 2020 to 41.51 million by April 2025.
Credit cards saw a 65 per cent increase, rising from 1.5 million to 2.5 million while prepaid cards experienced an extraordinary 1,283 per cent growth, surging from 0.55 million to 7.6 million during the same period, the central bank data reveals.
Talking to BSS, a senior official of Bangladesh Bank said over the past five years, Bangladesh has witnessed a remarkable transformation in its financial landscape, driven by the rapid expansion of card-based transactions.
The initiative by BB has been successful in promoting a cashless banking system and the continued growth in card usage indicates a positive trend towards a more digitally inclusive financial ecosystem in Bangladesh, he added.
To accelerate the adoption of electronic payment methods, he said, the government and Bangladesh Bank have implemented a series of targeted policy measures and regulatory reforms.
This strategic focus on digitization has yielded significant results, with card-based transactions experiencing exponential growth as businesses and consumers increasingly shift toward digital financial instruments, he added.
He said VISA credit cards were the most popular choice for both domestic and international transactions.
He expected that the cards usage will experience sustained growth further day by day if the development of Bangladesh continues coupled with rising living standard of the people and an increase in international transactions.
According to the BB data, domestically, credit card usage showed overall upward trend during April, 2024 to April, 2025 and showed a significant decrease in April, 2025 compared to that of March, 2025 due to Eid festival impact.
In contrast, cross-border transactions showed minor fluctuations over time but in April 2025, it showed a substantial increase (29.49 percent) compared to that of the previous month.
It is noteworthy to mention that, spending by foreign nationals within Bangladesh saw a sharp decline between June and October, 2024 before rebounding to normal levels by November, 2024 and further it increased steadily in December, 2024 to February, 2025 but it saw a slight decrease in March, 2025 and further it increased in April, 2025.
Within the country spending patterns of credit cards across different sectors in April, 2025 showed that nearly half (50 percent) of domestic credit card transactions occurred at department stores.
In April 2025, debit and prepaid card transactions outside the country showed distinct spending patterns in terms of amount and category distribution. Debit card transactions totaled Taka 3,108 million across 449,622 transactions, with the largest shares going to cash withdrawals (20.78 percent), retail outlet services (20.53 percent), and department stores (17.85 percent).
These three categories alone accounted for nearly 59 percent of the total debit card spending abroad.
In contrast, at the same time prepaid card transactions amounted to Taka 845 million from 118,128 transactions, with government services dominating the spending at 24.68 percent, followed by cash withdrawals (18.43 percent) and business services (18.29 percent).
Departmental stores also held a significant share at 15.7 percent.
Bangladeshi nationals primarily used their credit cards in the USA (14 percent), while USA cardholders accounted for the highest spending (42 percent) among foreign nationals within Bangladesh.
At the same time, Bangladeshi nationals used their debit cards most in China (21 percent) and prepaid cards most in UK (22 percent). The VISA cards emerged as the most popular choice for domestic, outward and inward transactions in April 2025.
Source: BSS
bd-pratidin/Rafid
