Buying 4G phones get easier thru’ bKash ‘Pay Letter’

bKash, Grameenphone and Citibank have joined the joint service through 'Pay-Letter' to make the purchase of 4G and 5G smartphones easier and more affordable for customers.

Through this, eligible bKash customers can purchase smartphones from smartphone partner brand sales points with 'Grameenphone Experience' and its bKash merchant accounts using Citibank's unsecured micro-loan service – 'Pay-Letter' from the app.

By using Pay-Letter service, customers can make payments instantly from the bKash app, in which case they will be given microloans ranging from Tk 500 to Tk 30,000. The customer can pay the full amount within 7 days without any interest, otherwise, the pay letter will be converted into a 3 month micro loan and interest will be charged at 9% per annum.

Meanwhile, in the 6 months payment method, the customer has to pay 20 percent down payment at the beginning and the remaining 80 percent will be divided into equal installments through pay-letter and automatically paid on the specified date of every month. In this case also interest at the rate of 9% per annum will be applicable. Customers can pay the money before the due date if they want.

A one-time processing fee will be added to the Pay-Letter service.

Apart from this, Grameenphone has brought affordable data packages to meet the increased digital needs of smartphone customers. Customers can buy 7GB (4GB regular and 3GB social media) internet package for 30 days for Tk 199 from MyGP app. A customer can avail the offer as many times as they wish up to 6 months from the date of purchase of the smartphone.

Commenting on the partnership, Grameenphone Chief Digital Officer Solaiman Alam said, “We are delighted to partner with bKash and City Bank's 'Pay Letter' service to make 4G and 5G smartphones more accessible to customers. One of the barriers to digital inclusion is the price of smartphones. So, by creating affordable and customer-friendly financing opportunities, we want to enable more people to enjoy the benefits of a digitally connected society. We are proud to join two more partners who believe in this mission of 'Connecting the Unconnected'. We are determined to innovate and improve the digital lifestyle of our customers.”

Ali Ahmed, Chief Commercial Officer of bKash said, “Pay Letter service has been launched to meet the urgent needs of customers anytime, anywhere. The partnership is aimed at providing enhanced digital services through smartphones and enhancing the seamless connectivity experience of customers. bKash will continue to work with established partners like Grameenphone and City Bank to bring more innovative services to meet the needs of customers.”

Md. Arup Haider, Head of Retail Banking, City Bank said, “Multiple partners have launched an innovative service like 'Pay-Letter' to make a significant impact in the lives of customers in the digital ecosystem. Today, the powerful technology developed by bKash and City Bank and its application is bringing banking services like loans and savings to a larger number of customers than conventional methods.”