Bangladesh Bank Disconnects DGPay from National Payment Switch Over Security Allegations

Bangladesh Bank has disconnected online payment gateway DGPay from the National Payment Switch Bangladesh (NPSB) over security concerns and allegations of server access from India. The central bank took the decision on 29 October.

People concerned said a Bangladesh Bank team went to DGPay's office for an audit on 29 October. After the audit, the team spoke to the company's officials and decided the same day to disconnect DGPay from the NPSB.

DGPay's managing director and chief executive officer (CEO) Rashed Mahmud said they learned of the disconnection from media reports. Bangladesh Bank gave no formal written or verbal notice during or after the audit, he said. Services other than NPSB-based transactions remain in operation, he added.

Bangladesh Bank executive director and spokesperson Arif Hossain Khan told Prothom Alo that various complaints had been received against the company, that it was not safe to keep it connected to the national transaction system, that an investigation had begun, and that a final decision on its licence would follow.

CEO Rashed Mahmud said the central bank's objection was mainly about their development team located in India. After the audit on 29 October, the Bangladesh Bank team spoke to their mid-level officials. A development and handover process was under way in their system, and an Indian company had the vendor work. Without minimal access for the development work, he asked, how would the vendor do the job — noting that it is an ongoing process.

Rashed Mahmud said many government and private banks in the country, including Bangladesh Bank itself, run operations through Indian vendors. Even so, as the regulator asked, DGPay took over system responsibility and handover from the Indian development team on Monday night. Ongoing development work is stalled for now, but the point of Bangladesh Bank's objection has been addressed, he said.

The NPSB is the central payment network run by Bangladesh Bank, connecting the country's banks and financial institutions for real-time digital transactions.

DGPay Services Limited received its Bangladesh Bank licence as a payment system operator (PSO) in August 2023. The company currently serves between 600 and 1,000 merchants regularly. DGPay is a subsidiary of the Dipon Group.