The Bangladesh Bank has decided to allow the foreign exchange dealer banks to offer the facility of repatriation of remittances against small-value service exports in non-physical form, such as data entry, data process, off-shore information technology service, business process outsourcing etc, through the online payment gateway service providers. The BB has taken the decision ‘In view of the growing role of the services provided by the Online Payment Gateway Service Providers (OPGSPs)’, subject to compliance of the certain conditions, the Foreign Exchange Policy Department of the BB said in a circular issued on Monday. An FEPD official said, according to the decision, the central bank would allow the small-value service exporters to get their payments from abroad through the OPGSPs like Paypal, Moneybookers, Best Payment Gateway, and virtual credit cards. Bangladesh Association of Software and Information Services president Mahboob Zaman told New Age that the BB decision would help the e-commerce facility widen. He said, ‘The BB decision will make it possible to get payments for services through Paypal, Moneybookers and other online payment systems, which will encourage outsourcing of services from Bangladesh.’ The BASIS president said, ‘The facility is limited for service export of a maximum value of $500, which is not realistic and is too small as most of the service amounts are higher than that.’ ‘But we think the central bank will increase the limit of the online payments from abroad,’ he added. The BB said the facility would only be available for service export in non-physical form of value not exceeding $500. According to the circular, the foreign exchange dealer banks or ADs will have to enter into standing arrangements with internationally recognised OPGSPs and maintain separate Nostro collection account for each OPGSP to repatriate service export-related payments. The circular said, ‘Service exporters availing of this facility will open notional accounts with the OPGSPs and the banks will have to ensure that no funds are retained in such accounts and all receipts should be automatically swept and pooled into the Nostro collection account maintained by the ADs.’ According to the circular, the debits that will be permitted to the Nostro collection account opened and maintained under the new arrangement are repatriation of funds representing service export proceeds to Bangladesh for payment to service exporters, payment of fee or commission to the OPGSP as per the predetermined rates or frequency or arrangement, and charge back to the service recipient or importer where the service exporter has failed in discharging the obligations as per specifications. ‘The ADs will have to repatriate the balances held in the Nostro collection account and arrange to credit the respective exporter’s account with a bank in Bangladesh on being confirmed that the export proceeds have been swept and pooled into the Nostro collection account from the exporter’s notional account,’ the circular said. It said the ADs would have to ensure deduction of applicable taxes, if any, and payment thereof. The other conditions for availing this facility include, ‘Besides reporting the transactions to Bangladesh Bank in monthly schedules or statements, ADs shall submit all the relevant information or documents relating to any transaction under this arrangement to the Bangladesh Bank, as and when advised to do so.’ Source: Click This Link