The number of Bangladeshi women using agent banks for deposits and loans has seen increases of 16.58 percent and 17.31 percent respectively in the past year, according to a Bangladesh Bank report.

Quarterly, the number of deposits made by women increased by 4.81 percent between April and June, while the number of loans granted decreased by 0.39 percent.

Bangladesh Bank’s April-June 2024 Agent Banking Statistics also highlighted the crucial role women play in promoting financial inclusion.

It showed that women now account for 49.67 percent of total deposits made through agent banks, while men contribute 48.78 percent and the remaining 1.55 percent comes from “others”.

The increase in female engagement indicates a positive trend towards financial empowerment and inclusion in the country’s banking sector.

At present, about 31 banks comprising two state-owned banks, 21 private commercial banks and 8 Islamic banks are operating agent banking services across the country.

As of June 2024, there were 21,473 points of sale managed by 15,991 agents, indicating an increase of 3.09 percent over the previous year and 0.99 percent over the previous quarter.

However, the number of agent banking units saw a more modest growth of 0.87 percent year-on-year, while its quarterly performance eased by 0.65 percent in the April-June period.

The report also mentions that there has been a significant increase in the total number of account holders which has reached 23.03 million with deposits worth around Tk 398,136 million.

These figures indicate an annual growth of 16.24 percent in total accounts and 22.34 percent in deposits, while the quarterly growth was 4.62 percent and 11.74 percent, respectively, it say.

The number of loans availed and total loans outstanding in the banking agencies also registered a substantial annual growth of 11.53 percent and 14.42 percent respectively.

In rural areas, deposits and loans through banking agent registered increases of 16.15% and 12.54% year-on-year, while the quarter-on-quarter growth was 4.82% and 0.48%, respectively, during April -June, the report states.