HC rule over legality of Nagad mobile banking
BI Report || BusinessInsider
Photo: Collected
The High Court (HC) on Wednesday issued a rule asking the authorities concerned to explain why the mobile banking and business activities of Nagad based on a temporary licence from Bangladesh Bank should not be declared illegal.
As a mobile financial service company, Nagad has been continuing mobile banking and business activities after taking a temporary licence from the central bank from 2019.
In response to a writ petition, the HC bench comprising Justice Md Mozibur Rahman Miah and Justice Kazi Md Ejarul Haque Akondo also asked the authorities concerned to explain why the Nagad’s licence should not be cancelled.
The finance secretary, the governor of Bangladesh Bank, its director general (payment system department), the director general of the Directorate of Posts, the managing director of Nagad and editors of The Daily Star, The New Age and The Business Standard have been asking to reply to the rule within four weeks.
Advocate Kamal Hossain Miazi appeared for the petitioners while Deputy Attorney General Aravind Kumar Ray stood for the state during the hearing on the petition.
Supreme Court lawyers Md Abu Bakar Siddiquee and Md Hasanuzzaman on October 27 jointly filed the petition as public interest litigation seeking its directive in this regard.
After the HC rule, Advocate Kamal told reporters that the MFS regulations of 2018 stipulate that a company must be an associate entity of a commercial bank to provide such services, which Nagad never was.
Citing a change to the regulations this year, Kamal said the service-providing companies were now allowed to be part of a financial institution or linked to any government organisation or agency, besides being connected to a bank.
Nagad was yet to associate itself with any of these, he said.
On Nagad identifying itself as an associate entity of the Bangladesh Post Office, Kamal said, “Nagad is not associated with the Post Office. We collected Nagad’s documents from the Registrar of Joint Stock Companies and Firms and submitted them to the court.”
