Impact of COVID-19 on Banking Agents in Bangladesh

In the past three years, agent banking in Bangladesh has gained tremendous impetus to drive financial services and accelerate financial inclusion. The total accounts opened at agent outlets doubled from 2.43 million in 2018 to 5.26 million at the end of 2019 as banks expand their agent banking activities gradually.

Given the nature and extent of the pandemic, this study was launched to help banks support their agents. The objective of the project was to understand the impact of COVID on the banking agents. The study was conducted over telephone interviews and gathered information from the agent communities affected directly by the pandemic.