The Bangladesh branch of global banking firm HSBC has conducted the country’s first blockchain-based letter of credit transaction on the Contour DLT platform. The transaction was used to settle the importation of 20,000 tonnes of fuel oil from United Group’s Singapore subsidiary United Mymensingh Power. HSBC Bangaladesh’s chief executive, Md Mahbub ur Rahman, described the transaction as showcasing the bank’s commitment “to supporting cross-border trade by Bangladeshi businesses using cutting-edge technology platforms.” “I believe this will usher in a new era of routing international trade transactions as businesses and governments recognize transparency, security and swiftness in performing tasks using blockchain …

The South Asian nation of Bangladesh will soon get its first blockchain remittance system that will allow Bangladeshi expats in Malaysia to instantly transfer wage remittances to their home country. According to a report from The Business Standard, the British national banking service firm Standard Chartered Bank (SCB) today announced the blockchain-based cross-border remittance service for Bangladesh. SCB developed the remittance service in collaboration with the Bangladesh-based mobile banking platform bKash and the Malaysian remittance provider Valyou. It utilizes the blockchain technology of Ant Group, the financial arm of the Chinese business conglomerate Alibaba Group. Ant Group, formerly known as …

Standard Chartered PLC, a British multinational banking and financial services company headquartered in London, England, has successfully leveraged blockchain technology to conduct Bangladesh’s first blockchain trade transaction, according to Newage on August 16. The Standard Chartered bank issued a Letter of Credit (LC) for the trade between garment exporter Viyellatex Ltd and Viyellatex Spinning on the Contour blockchain network. LC is a letter from a bank guaranteeing that a buyer's payment to a seller will be received on time and for the correct amount. The entire transaction was reportedly paperless and completed digitally through Contour’s network. Contour’s blockchain network builds …

IBM has announced an initiative to build a distributed ledger technology, or DLT, based architecture to underpin the digital pension system for Bangladeshi primary school teachers. The proof-of-concept comprises a permissioned network of teachers and other stakeholders powered by the IBM Blockchain Platform, with pension information uploaded to the blockchain to ensure tamper-resistant record-keeping and offer security assurances to teachers participating in GBB’s e-pension system. The pilot is being conducted in partnership with the Bangladesh Computer Council, BCC, a government overseeing IT policy in the country. IBM’s blockchain platform is slated to host the live version of the digital pension …

Finney, the world’s purportedly first blockchain-enabled smartphone, will soon be available for purchase in Bangladesh. According to a report by local newspaper The Daily Star on Sept. 9, the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission approved the phone for import in August and it will be available on the Bangladeshi market in October. Mobile Phones in Bangladesh Finney’s launch in Bangladesh comes amid a trend of growing smartphone ownership in the country. According to a 2018 report from global research firm GSMA Intelligence, by 2025, 75% of the population (138 million) will have smartphones, while 41% (73 million) will be mobile internet …

The Bangladesh government will use money from its $208 million IT project fund to send graduates for blockchain training in Japan and India. Bangladesh authorities plan to send 100 new IT graduates abroad to boost expertise in the fields of distributed ledger technology, artificial intelligence, machine learning and cyber security, Bangladesh’s English-language newspaper The Daily Star reports Aug. 4. As a part of the initiative, the government will also send 200 graduates of computer science and software, electrical and electronic engineering to learn about future trends of information technology, the report notes. The program description is available on the official …

Experts with ties to the World Bank Group presented options for using blockchain in e-government procurement (e-GP) in a report released Wednesday, Oct. 17. The World Bank Group includes organizations commonly known together as the World Bank. e-GP, which refers to business-to-government purchase and sale of anything from goods and services to data exchange, has spawned complex structures in many countries, which blockchain technology could help simplify and otherwise “enhance,” the report’s authors say. “Though the implementation of e-GP systems has contributed to enhanced efficiency and transparency in Government Procurement, there is potential for further advancement of the existing systems,” …