Automation in Dutch-Bangla Bank
(Report as on 31 Dec, 2014)
Introduction:
Dutch-Bangla
Bank, a highly technology-savvy bank, has been continuing its journey towards
adopting new technology-based ideas in delivery banking services since 2004. In
today’s banking sector, technology plays a vital role in executing all sorts of
customer friendly banking operations with cost efficient services. Technology
has become an aide of necessity rather than option in financial institutions
just to satisfy the growing service demand of the customer in a cost effective
way. Keeping this in view, the bank has adopted many technology based solutions
that has placed the bank at the zenith of the technological advancement in the
banking industry. The Bank has set up a comprehensive ICT infrastructure to manage
the time and geographical limitations, to bring employee efficiency, to provide
cost effective services to the customers with the ultimate objective of
customer satisfaction. Today, Dutch-Bangla Bank has become an ideal reference
for technology adoption and many banks in home and abroad follow the Bank. The
“Best Digital Bank” award to Dutch-Bangla Bank by the Digital World-2015
organized jointly by the ICT Division of the Government of Peoples Republic of
Bangladesh and Bangladesh Association of Software and Information Services
(BASIS) is a testimony to the fact.
The
Debut:
To
provide the valued customers of the bank with technology-based services with
reasonable charge/fee, the bank undertook a comprehensive IT project at a cost
of Tk.250 million in 2003. Keeping the security and reliability in mind, the
management of the bank identified some hardware and software components for the
project. Among hardware the multi-processor clustered Servers, ATM, POS
terminal, Card Personalization System, high capacity UPS, Host Security Module,
Networking Equipment, and among software the Core Banking Software, Switching
Software, Database and operating systems are identified to be required for the
project. In view to earn adequate technical know-how before acquiring these
hardware and software, a management team comprising the Managing Director,
Deputy Managing Director and the Head of IT visited similar installations in
different bank in Srilanka and India in January, 2003.
The
Board of the Directors of the Bank in its meeting held on 23 September, 2003
approved the project. Thereafter the management floated tenders for different
components separately and purchased the same.
Besides
this, the bank had setup a modern Data Center and DRS (Disaster Recovery Site)
to safe-guard the customer’s sensitive data. A set of servers, networking
equipment and UPS identical to the Data Center was installed at DRS. In case
the Data Center was destroyed for any reason, the DRS would take over the
control of branches, ATMs, POS terminal and Internet Banking.
The
implementation of the project was started with training of the Core Team
raining abroad. A team of 22 members which included 14 members from the
business and 8 members from the IT Division took 8 (eight) week long extensive
training on the project implementation issues. In February, 2004 the User
Acceptance Test (UAT) was started in the data center of the bank. The Core Team
and Networking Team started installation of the servers, networking equipment
& software, and customization of the same to adopt the prevailing banking
rules and regulations of the country. Side by side, the Switching Team started
installation of ATMs and POS terminals and testing their performance with the
switching software.
After
UAT was over, the roll-out of the branches from the old system to the newly
installed system began. The first two branches namely Local Office and the
Motijheel Foreign Exchange Branch went live on 3rd July, 2004 while
the first ATM was installed at the Local Office premises on 7 August, 2004. The
first debit card was issued on 26 July, 2004.
After
successful migration of the first two branches, the IT division rolled-out rest
of the branches one by one at every weekend and installed ATM under the
respective branches. On 17th December, 2004, roll-out of all the
branches of the bank was completed. The year-end operation of the bank was completed
successfully on 30th December, 2004 centrally at the Data Center.
The honorable finance minister officially
inaugurated the on-line banking services of Dutch-Bangla Bank 03 January, 2005.
Infrastructure:
Data Center and Disaster
Recovery Site:
A
corporate intranet was built connecting the Data Center (DC), Disaster Recover
Site (DRS), various branches and Head Office Divisions with a view of
establishing an uninterrupted flow of information in a secured manner. The
computing resources of the bank (Hardware, Software and Telecommunication
equipment etc.) have been installed in these places to ease the information
exchange among the employees of the bank. The main items that have been
installed in the DC & DRS includes the RISC based servers, Network
equipment, Storage, Database and other devices from many renowned international
brands.
The
live system normally runs from the DC. The DRS starts functioning if the DC
goes out of order for any reason. All the branches and Head Office Divisions
are connected through redundant telecommunication links with these two places.
Various world-class Application Software installed in these two places have
made it possible to process the information and make it available to all the
branches and Head office divisions instantly. As the processing, storage and
dissemination of information are done simultaneously at the central place, the
productivity of the employees has been increased to a great extent with the
ultimate outcome of better organizational efficiency.
Software
Systems:
Core Banking Solution:
DBBL
has been using world renowned Core Banking Solution named Flexcube UBS of
Oracle Financial Software Services Limited (OFSS), a concern of Oracle
Corporation. With this software, all the branches and Head Office Divisions are
conducting their business transaction concurrently and instantly as the
software is a centralized one installed in the Data Center. It has brought
efficiency of providing any branch banking service to our valued customers.
Moreover, it has enabled us to add other electronic delivery channels like ATM/
POS, Internet Banking etc. to provide 24x7x365 based services to our customers.
Switching Software:
DBBL has been using a renowned Switching Software
that allows us to establish the largest ATM and POS network in Bangladesh. It
is actually acting as a gatekeeper of our Core Banking Solution that checks and
verifies all the transactional requests from ATM and POS, and allows only the
valid transaction to execute. It has made the access to our Core Banking
Solution from the electronic delivery channels more secure.
Plastic Money -
Issuing:
Dutch-Bangla
Bank has made the plastic money popular in Bangladesh. Around 50% of the
present plastic cards of the country have been issued by the Bank.
Nexus Proprietary Debit Card:
Dutch-Bangla Bank issued its first
Nexus Proprietary Debit Card on July 26, 2004. Now “Nexus Debit Card” is the
most popular name in the Card Industry of Bangladesh. Bank has also issued
MasterCard Debit Card and Visa Debit Card. As at the end of year-2014, the
number of the Debit Card of the Bank stands at 3.80 million.
All
the debit cards of the Bank (Nexus, MasterCard and Visa) are Chip-based EMV
enabled.
The
Nexus Debit Cards are instant card i.e., the valued customers instantly get
their DBBL nexus debit cards along with PIN after opening an account in any of
the DBBL branches. Moreover, the customers get instant replacement of their
lost or damaged debit cards from their nearest branch.
The
Nexus Debit Card is accepted at ATM, POS terminals and Internet Payment Gateway
(for e-commerce payment).
MasterCard and Visa Debit Cards:
Dutch-Bangla Bank launched
issuing of MasterCard's debit products such as
Maestro and Cirrus in 2005 and Visa's debit products such as Visa Electron
& Plus in 2006. From then onward, Bank’s valued customers are able to
choose their card from a variety of DBBL Debit Cards.
International Debit Cards:
DBBL
issues international debit cards such as MasterCard Debit or Visa Debit. As per
Bangladesh Bank's circular, an international card can be issued against
customer foreign currency account like Resident Foreign Currency Deposit (RFCD)
account, Foreign Currency (FC) account or Exporter Retention Quota (ERQ)
account.
Credit Cards (Dual Currency):
DBBL has been issuing Visa EMV credit cards since November, 2008 and MasterCard EMV credit cards since April, 2010. Although DBBL's entrance in credit card services was delayed, it made
a difference in the market by issuing the most
secure EMV credit cards from the first day. At of the end of 2014, the total
number of Credit Card issued by the Bank stood at 53,640 units.
The
Credits Cards of the Bank are issued with dual currency i.e., the cards have
loan limit both in local currency as well as US dollar. If a card has a credit
limit in US dollar, the card become an international card and can be used
anywhere in the world.
Due
to security, other card-issuing banks in Bangladesh usually block customers’
International transactions and require the customer to make prior phone calls
to the card-issuing bank to open international transactions in their card. When
a customer returns to Bangladesh, he/she has to call the bank again to block his/her
card’s international transactions. Sometimes
card-issuing banks replace the
customer's card when the customer visits high risk countries such as
Malaysia and Thailand. But with DBBL's EMV enabled chip cards there is no such
hassle as international transactions are
always open and the customer is fully secured. In addition to providing security, DBBL charges the lowest Interest
rate in the market on purchase transaction and has a maximum of 50 days interest free (grace) period. There is also no fee
for cash withdrawal at DBBL ATM.
VISA Platinum Card (the Premium brand):
DBBL has launched VISA Platinum
card for its privileged customer on 16 December, 2014. The Chip-based Visa
Platinum offers a high credit limit and acceptance at more than 29 million locations
worldwide, including one million ATMs in the Visa Global ATM Network. A world
of privileges waits with Visa Platinum. From golf to dining to shopping and
more, Visa Platinum lets the valued cardholders enjoy a host of attractive
lifestyle privileges and experiences. These cards are targeted to high net
worth individuals who are international in outlook with large disposable income
and consistency of service. The card holders get airport lounge facilities and
priority pass in 600 airports, discount in hotel, dining, restaurants in almost
all the tourist cities worldwide as well.
MasterCard Titanium Card (the Premium brand):
DBBL has launched MasterCard
Titanium for the first time in Bangladesh on 16 December, 2014. With this
stylish Chip-based credit card, customers may enjoy exclusive benefits,
experiences and lifestyle privileges; including access to entertainment, sport,
electronics and much more. The MasterCard Titanium Credit Card opens up a world
of convenience, safety and simplicity. With access to over 30 million merchants
across the globe, it offers an excitingly diverse range of shopping, dining and
travel experiences to enrich the lifestyle including airport lounge facility
and priority pass.
Card Loyalty Program:
A point-based loyalty program has been introduced
for DBBL Credit cards and Debit cards in 2014. Customers will gain loyalty
points against their card spending at POS terminal or e-commerce gateway which
can be redeemed later on upon reaching to a certain threshold point or
completion of a certain period. Customers can prefer to redeem these loyalty
points for their annual fee waiver, cash back to their account or gift voucher
which is expendable at DBBL merchant outlets. A card holder earns 1 reward point for
spending every BDT 50/US$1.
0%
InstaPay:
Dutch-Bangla Bank has introduced a program called
“0% InstaPay” in 2014. Under this program, the DBBL cardholders can buy
different products and services from selected merchant outlets of the Bank and
repay in monthly installments at zero percent interest. The installment period
varies for different products from minimum three months to maximum twenty four
months. Under this facility customers
can buy furniture, electronics goods, jewelery and pay hospital bills.
Virtual Card:
Students pursuing higher education
and/or scholarships abroad are often required to pay the fees and charges online using a credit card. Students are
also required to
take various examinations such as IELTS, TOEFL, GMAT, GRE - all
of which require them to register online for paying fees and charges with a
credit card.
Most students and their guardians however are not eligible to have a credit card from a bank and thus do not have one. To help them, DBBL introduced
Virtual Card for the first time in Bangladesh
in 2011. This is not a plastic card - it is a piece of paper inside a
closed envelop which carries valid card number, expiry date' and CVV/CVC which can be used for payment to educational / certifications authorities. The virtual card is distributed from DBBL branches and
the value is fixed as per the requirement of the students. The DBBL Virtual Card has become very popular
amongst students.
Plastic
Money - Acquiring:
Acquiring MasterCard and Visa:
Dutch-Bangla Bank launched
acquiring of MasterCard's all products such as
MasterCard Credit Card, Maestro and Cirrus in 2005 and acquiring of Visa's all
products such as Visa Credit Card, Visa Debit, Visa Electron and Plus in 2006.
From then onward, all the MasterCard and
VISA card holders of other local and foreign banks were able to withdraw cash
from our DBBL ATMs and pay shopping, hotel or dining bills using DBBL POS
terminals.
Acquiring Union Pay cards:
Every
year travelers and workers visit Bangladesh for different purposes from Thailand, Malaysia, China, Korea, Japan, and Singapore who often have a Union Pay card. Dutch-Bangla Bank started acquiring of Union
Pay cards in 2014. Since then, a
Union Pay cardholder can withdraw cash from DBBL ATM or use DBBL POS for
shopping. DBBL also is planning to
acquire the same card at DBBL’s Internet Payment Gateway and also to issue in future.
Acquiring Diners' & Discover
cards:
Diners Club International, listed company in NYSE is
owned by Discover Financial Services, a renowned direct banking and payment
services company of U.S. permits banks to issue and acquire Discover and
Diner’s Club cards. Dutch-Bangla Bank started acquiring Discover and Diner’s
Club cards in 2013. Travelers bearing these cards can now withdraw money from any DBBL ATM booths. DBBL is planning to acquire the same at POS
terminals and DBBL’s Internet Payment
Gateway, and also to issue in the future.
Alternative
Delivery Channel:
Automated Teller Machine
(ATM):
Dutch-Bangla
Bank is pioneer in making the ATM services available to the mass population
specially to the poor and lower middle income group, and to the rural area.
DBBL installed its first onsite ATM on 7 August, 2004 and the first offsite ATM
at the Rifles Square, Dhaka on 25 November, 2004. Bank also launched “ATM on
Mobile Van” - first of its kind in Bangladesh on 30 October, 2008.
Meantime
DBBL has built a country-wide ATM network of 2,705 ATMs. The ATMs are available
in most of the prominent places all over Bangladesh. Since these services are
available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, it has overcome the time limitation of
traditional branch banking.
The average ATM uptime was 98% during 2013 and 2014.
Even though the number of ATMs has increased, with the help of ESQ ATM
Monitoring Software and effort of respective stake holders like bank employees,
cash feeding vendors and ATM & UPS maintenance companies, the Bank was able
to maintain the uptime of ATMs at 98% in both the years.
Bank has introduced state-of-the-art Cash Sorting
Machine to sort ATM cash for the first time in Bangladesh to ensure that
customers get good quality notes from ATM. The Cash Sorting Machines have been
installed in the branches from where third party vendors collect cash for ATM. Also
some machines have been installed at cash remitting branches so that they can
send sorted cash to ATM cash feeding branches. This has improved the quality of
notes delivered from ATMs and also eliminated the fake notes being dispensed
from ATMs.
To off-set electricity shortage problem at various
important locations, Bank has set up 41 units of solar systems at ATM booths
and Fast Tracks and a few more to be deployed soon.
Fast Track:
Dutch-Bangla
Bank introduced “First Truck” for the first time in Bangladesh in 2010. The
first Fast Track was installed in Gulshan-2 circle on 20 January, 2010.
Meantime DBBL has setup 350 numbers of Fast Track all over the country. These
Fast Tracks are opened 7 days a week and are being attended by two DBBL
officers every day. Customers can avail services like cash deposit, cash
withdrawal, and assistance for account opening & card related services from
these Fast Tracks. Because of its excellent 24x7x365 service, the name “Fast Track”
has deeply anchored in the mind of the common people of Bangladesh.
Point of Sale (POS)
terminals:
Dutch-Bangla Bank installed its first POS terminal
on 18 April, 2005 at Solna in Kalabagan, Dhaka. Meantime DBBL has extended the
POS network nationwide to cater the demand of card users. Currently DBBL has
7,599 numbers of POS terminals installed across the country. As of 31 December 2014,
total volume of transaction was BDT 11,843 million and at the same point in
2013 it was BDT 6,675 million. From 2013 to 2014 the rate of growth of
transaction in POS was 77%.
Internet banking:
Dutch-Bangla
Bank has introduced the Internet Banking system on 3 July, 2004. This was the
first Internet Banking of the country with facilities of real-time financial
transactions. Internet Banking system of the Bank is a less expensive
electronic delivery channel best for the roaming customers through which Fund Transfer,
opening of Term Deposits, payment of Utility Bills, issuing Standing Instructions,
printing Account Statement and many other services are made available to the
valued customers. All these activities are done without intervention of a bank
official. The flavor of Internet banking makes no difference whether the
customers are living abroad or in Bangladesh.
Internet Payment Gateway
for settlement of e-Commerce transactions:
Buying
and selling of goods and services online is the most popular consumer habit
being growing in the developed countries day by day. It has also started its
journey in Bangladesh. To become a most active player in this new market, DBBL
for the first time in Bangladesh, established an Internet Payment Gateway on 3rd
June, 2010.
DBBL’s
Internet Payment Gateway accepts Nexus Cards and all types of cards of
MasterCard and Visa. There are 272 e-merchants including WASA and DESCO registered
for Dutch-Bangla Bank’s Internet Payment Gateway. Cardholders from DBBL, other
local or international banks can buy goods and services like commodities,
tickets of airline, train, bus, payment of tuition fees of various schools and
universities, booking of hotels and payment of utility bills using their
respective cards from these e-merchant web sites and DBBL settles the
transactions between the cardholder’s bank and the e-merchant.
To secure e-commerce transactions, Bank has implemented
security mechanism called “3D secure” (on the other terms, ‘vbv’ for Visa and ‘Secure
Code’ for MasterCard) which protect the merchants from loss due to fraud
transactions.
As of 31st December 2014 total volume of e-commerce transaction
was BDT 830.07 Million which was in increase of 93% from the previous year.
In 2014 DBBL has signed up some prominent e-merchant
like The Institution of Engineers, Bangladesh (IEB), BAF Shaheen English Medium
School (SEMS), American International School Dhaka (AISD), RUET-50 Years
Celebrate, Bangladesh Business Publications Ltd and Amber Lifestyle.
Call
Center – 16216:
Dutch-Bangla Bank has established it call center on 1st
February, 2011 as another delivery channel to deliver services to the valued
customers. Due to a significant growth in customer acquisition and number of
transactions in various segments of the Bank’s portfolio, Call Center received
around 12.22% more calls in 2014 than the previous year. There are 42 agents
working in the DBBL Call center 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
SMS and Alert Banking:
In the month of September,
2006, the bank launched sms and alert banking Systems. The sms banking system
is a modern tool for banking using a mobile phone. This service puts the
banking at the palm top of the customers. The customers can avail a wide range
of banking services such as balance inquiry, obtaining mini statement, paying
utility bills through his/her mobile, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year sitting
at his/her home or vehicle.
Using the Alert Banking System, Dutch-Bangla Bank
alerts its customer about transactions in their respective account. Alert
service is very convenient, useful & easy way to know the activity of the
bank account. When an account is debited or credited for more than a certain
amount, an automatic alert is sent to the account holder’s mobile phone
informing detail of the transaction such as time & amount. Similar alerts
are sent for transaction in credit card account. Moreover a message is sent to
account holders’ mobile at the end of each month. The client can register for
this service free of cost.
Alert Type
|
Description
|
Debit
alert
|
Sent when customer account is debited by more
than a specific amount
|
Credit
alert
|
Sent when customer account is credited by more
than a specific amount
|
Month-end
alert
|
The account balance at the end of a month is sent
to the customer. The balance is also sent at the end of each quarter, half
year-end and year-end. In December 2014, more than three million customers of
DBBL were informed of their year-end balances at their mobile phones
|
Credit
card alert
|
Sent to credit cardholders on each of his/her
credit card transactions. Thus, by knowing the credit card transaction alert
in time, the customer can prevent any unauthorized or fraudulent activities
in card account
|
Integration
with Central Bank & other Banks:
Bangladesh Automated
Clearing House - BACPS & BEFTN:
The
Bangladesh Bank launched a project of automating the payment systems of the
country in the name of “Bangladesh Automated Clearing House” or BACH on 7
October, 2010. The BACH has two components:
i) BACPS
(Bangladesh Automated Cheque Processing Systems) and
ii) BEFTN
(Bangladesh Electronic Funds Transfer Network)
Dutch-Bangla
Bank is the first Bank to connect with the BACPS on October 7, 2010. Under this
project, Dutch-Bangla Bank has provided MICR check scanner to all of its branches.
As a result, the customers’ check can be cleared within shortest possible time
using the BACPS. As the BACPS is integrated with our Core Banking System, the
whole operation is done with minimum human resources.
Dutch-Bangla
Bank is also the first bank to join BEFTN on 28 February, 2010. All of our branches
are actively participating in BEFTN. As a result, batch transfer of funds like
salary disbursement and distribution of cash dividend of shareholders of
various public limited companies to other banks has become very easy task today
along with many other individual fund transfer like insurance premium, fund
transfer through Standing Instruction.
MICR Check Reader to Cash
Tellers:
DBBL
has installed MICR (Magnetic Ink Character Recognition) Check Readers to all
its cash tellers to verify the genuineness of a check before it is paid.
Moreover, it has been integrated with the Core Banking Solution FlexCube UBS so
that the account number, check number etc. are automatically fed to the
corresponding fields in the check payment screen. It has increased the
efficiency of the cash tellers substantially.
NPSB:
The Central Bank has setup National Payment Switch, Bangladesh (NPSB) to facilitate interbank ATM transactions in Bangladesh. Dutch-Bangla Bank is the first Bank to join the NPSB on 26 December, 2012. The Central Bank has fixed an interchange fee of Tk.20/- for such transactions i.e., if customers of other bank withdraw money from a DBBL ATM, that Bank will pay Tk.20/- to DBBL as service charge.
Present the cost per transaction at DBBL ATM is Tk. 40/-. This means that DBBL is subsidizing Tk. 20/- per transaction for the customers of other Banks.
DBBL understand that the NPSB will help develop the socio-economic condition of the country as a whole. More and more people will be able to get benefit of the modern technology both in urban and rural areas at an affordable cost. DBBL is bearing the differential cost as part of its CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) activities.
SWIFT System:
SWIFT
is a secured tool for the banks to exchange financial message with other banks.
The Letter of Credit (L/C) is prepared and delivered to the recipient bank
quickly using SWIFT. In Dutch-Bangla Bank, the Core Banking Solution is integrated
with the SwiftAlliance Access Software that enables CBS to send the L/C and
other fin message as soon as it is prepared and authorized in CBS. Moreover,
nostro account reconciliation has become an easy task due to the fact that
messages related to nostro account information such as MT 940 and MT 950
messages are automatically fed into the reconciliation module of CBS for auto
reconciliation.
Security
at DBBL Automation:
EMV:
The normal bank card was introduced 40 years ago and has failed to keep up with the rapid technology and security development that has been taking place in the industry. Its inherent problems caused competitors Visa and MasterCard to collaborate and create a next generation bank card that will keep up with rapid security developments called EMV.
DBBL keeps track of the latest security developments internationally and strives to give the same level of service to its local clients. To give more peace of mind to its customers along with more security, the Bank has implemented EMV (EuroPay, MasterCard and Visa) for its credit cards on 27 November, 2008 and debit cards on 14 January, 2015 and made all the ATMs and POS terminals EMV enabled on 31 March, 2009 so that these can accept EMV cards from anywhere in the world. DBBL for the first time in this region has offered a complete EMV solution (both in issuing and acquiring for all types of cards of Visa and MasterCard) for the cardholders.
While an EMV Card may look similar to a normal card, the technology on it and supporting it is revolutionary. It uses an onboard computer chip instead of a magnetic strip and relies on DBBL’s data center for on the spot verification. It features built in encryption algorithms mandated by Visa and MasterCard which are impossible to duplicate or modify. It was designed and researched by Visa and MasterCard to be the most advanced card and eliminates the security problems of normal cards.
An EMV card can be used
in ATM safely for withdrawal of money. The EMV credit card issued against
Travel Quota (TQ), Residential Foreign Currency Deposit (RFCD) or Retention
Quota (RQ) can also be used securely aboard for payment of various bills and/or
withdrawal of Foreign Currency.
Although
the EMV was developed jointly by Europay, MasterCard & Visa but was later
adopted by other payments card brands. In addition to preventing copying of
card data, the EMV also ensures a liability shift benefit which protects
cardholders from financial loss in non-EMV ATM and POS terminals.
Second Factor
Authentication (2FA) for Internet Banking and e-com transactions:
DBBL
implemented Second Factor Authentication Systems (2FA) for the first time in
Bangladesh on 22 July, 2013. The 2FA solution system is a security system in
which more than one form of authentication is used to verify the legitimacy of
a transaction where end user cannot disown the authenticity of a transaction.
The clients of DBBL are making the transactions with more security through
different delivery channel like Internet Banking and Internet Payment Gateway using 2FA solution.
In this process, customer is required to enter a secret code (which is
different for each transaction) in addition to his/her normal password or card
information at the time of making transaction at Internet Banking System or e-commerce
site respectively, which ensures genuine cardholders’ participation and thus protects
fraud.
DBBL offers hardware token and
software token to the customer to use for completing 2FA during a transaction. At
the time of registration process, the cardholders choose the option which is
suitable to him.
Financial
Inclusion:
Mobile Banking:
In
Bangladesh, a large number of people in the rural areas are not getting
financial services due to non-availability of traditional banking channels. These
people usually keep the excess money at their home or shop. They cannot get the
opportunity to open a bank account and keep money safely. Moreover, many people
from the rural areas are coming to the urban areas to work in the mills and
factories and in various offices. Students are also coming to the urban areas
to study in various institutes. For all these reasons, a substantial local
remittance market has been created in the country.
Again
as the Cell Phone has reached to the hands of many families of the rural people,
it is really a great opportunity for the banks to provide these financial
services electronically to this underprivileged group of people. Mobile
Telecommunication Network is the cheapest electronic delivery channel being
used by many companies all over the world to deliver information based services
to their customers remotely. Considering this opportunity, Bangladesh Bank has
issued a guideline on Mobile Financial Services for Banks under which Dutch-Bangla
Bank, for the first time in Bangladesh started mobile banking on 31 March, 2011.
Agent Banking:
In
view to provide banking services to the unbanked who don’t have a mobile phone,
DBBL launched pilot operation of Agent Banking Services on 19 January, 2015. Under
this system, a customer can open a bank account and operate it through an
Agent. Customer will approve his transaction placing his finger on a biometric
scanner. This is the most secured banking system in the world. As this type of
banking does not require a signature-based authentication or a PIN-based
authentication, customer who does not have education or a mobile phone can
transact easily from an Agent point situated close to his residence.
Green
IT:
Green
IT refers the operation of IT to be conducted in such a manner that helps the
overall reduction of external carbon emission and internal carbon footprint and
also mitigate the risk for change of climate due to human activity. To comply
Green IT, bank has adopted necessary technology, process and product which
result substantial reduction of the carbon footprint as well as develop
sustainable business.
Upcoming
Projects:
Near Data Center:
A
massive project for building a state of the art new Near Data Center (Near DC) has
been taken. The Near DC will be connected to the DC in a sync mode with zero RPO
i.e, there will have no data loss in case of failure of the DC or near DC.
Both
the DC and the Near DC will run alternatively on monthly basis. This will
improve the system down time occurs in the DC due to unavoidable circumstances
like failure in cooling system, power system (ATS, Generator, UPS, MDB) or at
any DC non-redundant component. International tenders have been floated by the
Bank in this respect.
Queue Management System:
Dutch-Bangla
Bank has started a project to setup Queue Management System in the branches to
provide better customer service. The system has been installed and tested. Pilot
branches have been identified and pilot run will start soon. Based on the
feedback of these branches it will be rolled out to other branches in phases.
After the project is completed it will help the bank in identifying the areas
of customer service where we can improve. We shall also be able to identify
which areas are the bottlenecks, which employees are performing well and who
are not.
Document Management System:
It
is a green IT project undertaken by the Bank. With the implementation of the
Document Management System, it will not only reduce the hassle of storing huge
paper documents, it will also improve the work efficiency with the use of Work
Flow management. As for example, loan application processing, leave application
etc. are expected to be processed through the work flow management. The
software has been installed. The required processes have been identified.
Customization of the software to accommodate the processes is going on.
Even More ATMs:
The population of ATM in
the urban area is more than the rural area. There is always a demand for ATM in
both the urban and rural area as all the customers wants to have an ATM within
his/her walking distance. DBBL is, therefore, undertaken a plan to install another
2,000 units of ATM specially in the rural area.
In-house Software:
Dutch-Bangla
Bank has developed a number of in-house software for various activities such as
HRM, Inventory, Remittance Management, and Bangladesh Bank Reporting. In the
upcoming years Dutch-Bangla Bank will continue its effort to develop many
in-house software for the automation of it various activities.
Auto Bills pay using DBBL Cards:
For convenience of payment of
utility bills, auto bills pay facilities are going to be extended at DBBL for
its cardholders soon. The cardholder will once register with the bank for this
service. Once registered, the cardholders’ recurring utility bills like post-paid
mobile bills, and utility bills of WASA, DESCO etc. will be automatically paid from
his card account.
