Brac Bank has signed an agreement with the country’s sole state-owned life insurance entity, Jiban Bima Corporation (JBC), to collect insurance premiums through Brac Bank’s various physical and digital channels along with the bank’s subsidiary, bKash.
Under the arrangement, the JBC policy-holders across the country can now pay insurance premiums through the bKash app and USSD code *247#. In addition, JBC can collect the premium from its policy holder’s bank account through the ‘Direct Debit Pull’ service of Brac bank.
The arrangement enables JBC with real-time accounts reconciliation as Brac Bank and bKash have established API connectivity with JBC’s central accounts management system, according to a press release.
bKash and ‘Direct Debit Pull’ solutions were formally launched at a ceremony at The Westin on June 15.
Other solutions under this arrangement, such as Brac Bank’s agent banking, branch/sub-branch network, payment gateway and mobile app ‘Astha’ shall be made available gradually in a short period.
Sheikh Mohammad Salim Ullah, secretary of the Financial Institutions Division, Ministry of Finance, was the chief guest. Md Asadul Islam, chairman, and former senior secretary of Jiban Bima Corporation was present as the special guest. Md Saiful Islam, managing director, additional secretary of Jiban Bima Corporation; Selim RF Hussain, managing director and CEO of Brac Bank; Major General Sheikh Md Monirul Islam (Retd), chief external and corporate affairs officer of bKash Limited; and Tareq Refat Ullah Khan, deputy managing director and head of corporate banking of Brac Bank; were also present at the event.
About the partnership, Selim RF Hussain, managing director of Brac Bank, said: “Over the last couple of years Brac Bank has enhanced its transaction banking capacity by developing various value-adding collection and payment solutions, especially for the insurance industry. Our partnership with Jiban Bima Corporation will greatly benefit the valued customers as they can pay their premiums from anywhere anytime. The customers do not have to visit the JBC office anymore to deposit the premium, rather they can use an app to pay with just a few clicks. We thank JBC for making Brac Bank, and its subsidiary bKash Limited, a partner of the digital initiative that is aligned with the government’s vision of Digital Bangladesh. As a customer-centric bank, Brac Bank always explores new ways to provide a delightful customer experience.”
About the partnership, Sheikh Mohammad Salim Ullah, secretary of the Financial Institutions Division, Ministry of Finance, said: “In the insurance sector, the most important thing is to establish trust among the customers. Through this initiative of Brac Bank, Jiban Bima Corporation and bKash, the customers will be benefited as there will be the opportunity to pay premium anytime from anywhere. This is a boon of digitalization. I hope this joint initiative will facilitate people to enjoy insurance service more safely and conveniently.”
Major General Sheikh Md Monirul Islam (Retd), chief external and corporate affairs officer of bKash, said: “We are glad to partner with the government-owned largest insurance service provider Jiban Bima Corporation, in collaboration with Brac Bank. The opportunity for policy-holders to deposit their premiums through bKash from anywhere during any time of the day or night will increase convenience and bring more dynamism to the insurance industry. bKash, as a compliant organization, will extend all its support to make insurance more popular among its 62 million customers.”
Live transactions of bKash and Brac Bank’s Direct Debit Pull were demonstrated at the ceremony to mark the digital service launch.
