Nagad Digital Bank PLC has become the first company to receive a digital bank license from the Bangladesh Bank (BB).

The BB officially listed Nagad Digital as a scheduled bank, as per a notice from the banking regulator.

The announcement was made at a program held at the Bangladesh Bank headquarters in Dhaka.

Tanvir A Mishuk, founder and CEO of Nagad Ltd, stated, “We have been advocating for a digital bank to transform Bangladesh into a smart economy through cashless transactions.”

The Bangladesh Bank’s board of directors granted final approval for Nagad Digital Bank on May 28, following the fulfillment of criteria outlined in the letter of intent (LoI) issued in October last year.

Nagad Digital Bank has issued 12.5 crore shares among seven sponsors. Three companies—Osiris Capital Partners (USA), Blue Haven Ventures (USA), and Finclusion Ventures Pte Ltd (Singapore)—hold more than 10 percent of the shares.

The remaining shareholders include Zen FinTech (USA), Trupay Technologies, Farhan Karim Khan, and Fintechtual Holdings Ltd, which is the sole local shareholder.

In a related notice, the banking regulator permitted Osiris Capital, Blue Haven, and Finclusion to hold shares exceeding the directors’ allowed limit as stipulated in Bangladesh’s existing banking laws.

The current Bank Company Act prohibits any individual, organization, company, or family member from holding more than 10 percent of shares directly or indirectly in a company.

However, this permission was made possible after the finance ministry extended an exemption under the Bank Company Act 1991 provision on March 27, allowing Nagad Digital Bank to proceed with its unique shareholding structure.