Samir’s Story

Samir is around 70 years old and lives in a peri-urban area near Gopalganj, Sylhet, Bangladesh. Without a mobile phone or Mobile Financial Services (MFS) account of his own, he primarily relies on his son’s mobile phone for communication and financial transactions when necessary. Samir receives an old age allowance from the government every three months, which used to be deposited into his bank account.

However, about a year ago, the local ward member advised him to open an MFS account to facilitate the allowance payments.

Since Samir wasn't familiar with the process, he turned to his son, who already had a DFS account. After discussing it, they decided to use this account for the allowance. Two days later, Samir submitted the account details to the union council, and since then, the allowance has been deposited into Samir’s son’s account.

Samir doesn’t know the details of the account or its PIN, as his son, now living abroad, manages it. In his absence, Samir’s daughter-in-law uses the account. When the allowance is disbursed, she is often unaware of the deposit, and it is through their neighbours that they learn about the funds. Once notified, they take the phone to a trusted agent, who helps check the balance and withdraw the money.

This agent, who is also Samir’s nephew, runs his business in the Golapganj bazaar and lives near Samir’s home. Due to their close family ties, Samir trusts him completely with financial transactions. The agent knows the PIN for the Nagad account and provides MFS services from home, sparing Samir the need to visit the shop for withdrawals.

Despite the convenience MFS offers, Samir still feels more secure with traditional banking. He believes that banks offer more safety, and he is concerned about the potential risks of losing money with digital financial services, which reinforces his preference for banks over mobile money.