Mastercard and Bangladesh Garment Manufacturer and Exporters Association (BGMEA) launched prepaid cards for workers in the Ready-Made Garment (RMG) industry and the first-ever co-branded credit cards for BGMEA’s executives, a press release said Wednesday.
By enabling RMG workers’ wages to be digitally disbursed via prepaid cards, this initiative has the potential to enable financial inclusion for 4.5 million RMG workers. The issuing bank for the prepaid card is Southeast Bank Limited (SEBL), while the credit card is issued by Mutual Trust Bank Limited (MTB).
The co-branded cards were unveiled at an event attended by chief guest Salman F Rahman, Private Industry and Investment Adviser to the Prime Minister; Nasrul Hamid Bipu, MP, Hon’ble State Minister, Ministry of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources, The Govt of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh; Faruque Hassan, President, BGMEA (Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association); Syed Mohammad Kamal, Country Manager, Bangladesh, Mastercard; Syed Mahbubur Rahman, MD & CEO, Mutual Trust Bank (MTB); Mr. M. Kamal Hossain, Managing Director, Southeast Bank Limited, as well as former BGMEA presidents and senior officials from the respective organizations.
The SEBL Mastercard Prepaid Card for RMG workers is designed to ensure a safer, more convenient payment option than cash. Additionally, RMG workers do not need to open a bank account at SEBL to obtain the card, simplifying their access to the digital payment solution.
The MTB Mastercard World Credit Card for BGMEA executives offers exclusive benefits and features, allowing cardholders to transact locally and internationally with greater convenience. Using this card, cardholders can carry out both contact and contactless transactions globally through its dual interface feature, which also supports ATM, POS, QR, and e-commerce payments along with no annual fees for the first year. In addition, the card offers complimentary access to MTB Air Lounges at all major airports in Bangladesh and more than 1,100 airport lounges worldwide under the Mastercard ‘LoungeKey’ Program which Mastercard cardholders with World and Platinum credit cards access to over 1,100 airport lounges.
Faruqe Hassansaid, “I would like to express my gratitude to Mastercard for this initiative and thank MTB and SEBL for making a significant contribution to the inclusion of RMG workers in the digital financial system.”
Syed Mahbubur Rahman said, “MTB is proud to work with Mastercard to announce the launch of the co-branded BGMEA MTB Mastercard World Credit Card. We believe this cooperative launch will provide executives of BGMEA access to a variety of exclusive offers all across the world.”
Kamal Hossain said, “Southeast Bank is glad to be partnering this co-brand program with Mastercard and BGMEA. I believe the SEBL Mastercard Prepaid Card will successfully provide BGMEA workers with a smooth and hassle-free payment solution, bringing them into financial inclusion.”
Syed Mohammad Kamal said, “Mastercard is proud to partner with BGMEA to offer more efficient payment options that will enable the underserved RMG worker to finally have a financial tool to conduct cashless transactions via cards while also providing additional benefits for BGMEA officials.”
