e-commerce
Registration is a must for E-commerce firms: Committee
E-commerce companies will have to get registered online filling out a prescribed format prepared by the ministry of commerce to do business.
The ministry is now working on how to register all the e-commerce companies through an online system so that the service becomes hassle free but smart, AHM Safiquzzaman, additional secretary of the Commerce Ministry, told reporters on Tuesday.
On October 12, the government formed a committee with Safiquzzaman as its chairman to monitor e-commerce companies and recommend what needs to be done to protect the rights of consumers.
The committee sat in its first meeting on Monday and its second meeting is scheduled to be held next week, sources said.
Read: Recommendations to recover scammed e-commerce money within a month
The committee will have to submit a report before the cabinet division within one month as per the deadline set in the working paper.
According to the sources, the committee will recommend the method of transparent financial transactions of e-commerce companies and how to bring them under VAT and Income Tax network.
The instructions that will come from the cabinet department will be implemented later.
Read: E-commerce Scams: Ways to Protect Your Investment from Online Frauds
“The committee has jurisdiction over the method of recovering money and assets. The Cabinet Division will decide whether an administrator will be appointed or not,” Safiquzzaman said.
The Cabinet Division, Information and Communication Technology Division, Financial Institutions Division, Bangladesh Bank, Police, Defence Intelligence Directorate, National Security Intelligence Agency, Special Branch of Police, BFIU, NBR, National Telecommunication Monitoring Center, Police Criminal Investigation Division, Consumers Association of Bangladesh (CAB) are working together to set up a standard system of e-commerce business.
Recommendations to recover scammed e-commerce money within a month
The committee formed for safeguarding rights of scammed e-commerce consumers will submit a report with recommendations within one month to restore discipline in the sector.
“According to the mandate we will determine a method for recovering the lost money of consumers in e-commerce and will send it to the cabinet”, said Additional secretary of the Commerce Ministry AHM Shafiquzzaman on Monday
He said this to journalists on Monday after attending a meeting held in this regard at the secretariat.
Also read: Money laundered by e-commerce firms to be recovered: Murad Hassan
“Arrangements will be made according to the cabinet’s decision. For Evaly the High Court itself is appointing administrators which can be followed for others too,” he said.
From June 30 an escrow system has been introduced where a third party holds the payment money until the product is delivered properly, said the additional secretary.
“The report will include recommendations on bringing all the e-commerce sites under one payment gateway and bringing them under VAT, TAX.” he said.
A total of eight recommendations will be sent to the cabinet within a month for securing the consumer rights, said Shafiquzzaman.
According to which policy makers will be able to make a digital commerce guideline or a way to bring e-commerce under discipline, he added.
The additional secretary said, the incidents regarding e-commerce have definitely caused damage which has to be repaired for taking it forward.
Also read: HC wants to know steps taken to prevent money laundering by e-commerce firms
Regarding the registration of e-commerce, the official said a format has already been made and the committee is working on the online registration process now.
“A meeting will be held next week in this regard,” he said.
More e-commerce scams exposed: 6 officials of Tholay.com, WeCoom.com held
Members of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) detained six officials of Tholay.com and WeCoom.com on charge of embezzlement of Tk 2.5 crore.
They were detained after an aggrieved customer lodged a complaint with the police against the two e-commerce platforms on charge of fraud, said Additional Deputy Inspector General of CID Imam Hossain while briefing reporters at its headquarters on Monday.
The detainees are Nazrul Islam, head of operation of Tholay.com and WeCoom.com, Sohel Hossain, 27, accounts officer of the firms, Tarek Mahmud Anik, 28, digital communication officer, Sazzad Hossain alias Piash, 27, sales executive officer, Munna Pervez, 26, call centre executive officer and Masum Hasan, 27, supervisor.
Also read: E-commerce firms like Evaly, E-orange to face action: DMP
The CID team also recovered some documents of agreement, bank cheques, photocopy machines, registrars and currency counting machines from the office.
While briefing, Imam Hossain said the e-commerce platforms allured customers with many discounts and offers and swindled Tk 2.5 crore from them, he said.
Khairul Alam Mir, 27, a customer, complained that the companies offered many products at lucrative prices and promised that they would ensure delivery of their products within 30 days but failed to do that.
The scams of e-commerce platforms surfaced recently with the detection of fraudulence by a number of e-commerce firms, including Evaly and E-orange.
These online platforms took advance payments from customers by offering lucrative discounts but failed to supply the products.
Evaly
Evaly CEO Mohammad Rassel and his wife Shamima Nasrin were arrested after an aggrieved customer, Arif Baker, lodged a case with Gulshan police station accusing them and few other company executives of embezzlement of money.
Sub-inspector Ahidul Islam, the investigation officer of the case, said the case was registered over the allegation of embezzlement of money and fraudulence.
Besides, the Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit (BFIU), an arm of the Bangladesh Bank that specializes in financial crime investigations, directed all the commercial banks and financial institutions through a common letter on August 27 to freeze all the bank accounts operated by top executives of Evaly.
Also read: Money laundered by e-commerce firms to be recovered: Murad Hassan
The Directorate of National Consumer Right Protection, a department under the Commerce Ministry, received allegations from consumers about “cheating” by Evaly.
Bangladesh Bank officials said one of the major allegations against Evaly is forcing its consumers to deposit their money in the e-wallet of the firm which was totally illegal.
E-orange
On September 2, a Dhaka court sent virtual outlet e-orange.shop owner Sonia Mehzabin, her husband Masukur Rahman and, Chief Operating Officer, Aman Ullah to jail in a fraud case filed over embezzlement of Tk 1,100 crore from consumers.
On August 23, Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Morshed Al Mamun Bhuiyan placed the accused on a 5-day remand in the case.
On August 17, the court sent them to jail rejecting their bail prayers when they surrendered to Dhaka Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Abubakar Siddique's court.
On August 16, an aggrieved customer of E-Orange, Md Taherul Islam, filed a fraud case with Gulshan police in presence of 37 other customers who testified against the accused.
Protect e-commerce customers, President asks the Competition Commission
President Abdul Hamid on Thursday asked Bangladesh Competition Commission to protect the e-commerce customers from fraudulence.
The President made the call when a delegation of the commission led by Commerce Minister Tipu Munshi presented the annual report of the commission for FY2020-2021 to the President at Bangabhaban.
He said the commission will have to find effective ways to curb fraudulence with consumers in the growing digital business in the country.
Read: President Hamid urges ACC to go hard after the corrupt people
Deputy Press Secretary to the President Munshi Jalal Uddin told UNB that Chairman of the Commission Mofizul Islam briefed the President about its activities.
Commerce Secretary Tapan Kanti Ghosh and member of the commission GM Saleh Uddin, AFM Manzoor Qadir, and Nasrin Begum were present during meeting.
Terming e-commerce as a promising sector, the President said everyone should be careful so that this sector does not stumble at the beginning due to some dishonest traders.
Read: President Hamid calls for boosting ICT skills of judges
He called upon the authorities concerned to crack down on those who work against the interests of the customers.
The President said that the Competition Commission should take steps so the consumers get quality products at reasonable prices as well as protect the interests of traders.
E-commerce firms like Evaly, E-orange to face action: DMP
Stern action will be taken against e-commerce firms like Evaly and E-orange, said AKM Hafiz Akhter, additional commissioner (DB) of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP).
“There’re many organisations like Evaly and E-orange which are involved in fraudulence. They’re involved in cheating on customers through offering prices lower than the market ones. Investigations are on and action will be taken after the investigations,” he said while speaking at a press briefing at DMP media centre on Saturday.
“We want good e-commerce platforms to flourish in the country, but action will be taken those who indulge in cheating,” said Hafiz.
Also read: Evaly’s liabilities over Tk 1,000 crore
Evaly’s fraudulence
Evaly CEO Mohammad Rassel and his wife Shamima Nasrin were arrested after an aggrieved customer, Arif Baker, lodged a case with Gulshan police station accusing them and few other company executives of embezzlement and fraudulence.
Sub-inspector Ahidul Islam, the investigation officer of the case, said the case was registered over the allegation of embezzlement of money and fraudulence.
Besides, the Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit (BFIU), an arm of the Bangladesh Bank that specializes in financial crime investigations, directed all the commercial banks and financial institutions through a common letter on August 27 to freeze all the bank accounts operated by top executives of Evaly.
The Directorate of National Consumer Right Protection, a department under the Commerce Ministry, received allegations from consumers about “cheating” by Evaly.
Bangladesh Bank officials said one of the major allegations against Evaly is forcing its consumers to deposit their money in the e-wallet of the firm which was totally illegal.
Also read: Owner of e-orange.shop, 2 others land in jail
E-orange
On September 2, a Dhaka court sent virtual outlet e-orange.shop owner Sonia Mehzabin, her husband Masukur Rahman and, Chief Operating Officer, Aman Ullah to jail in a fraud case filed over embezzlement of Tk 1,100 crore from consumers.
Earlier on August 23, Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Morshed Al Mamun Bhuiyan placed the accused on a 5-day remand in the fraud case.
On August 17, the court sent them to jail rejecting their bail prayers when they surrendered to Dhaka Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Abubakar Siddique's court.
On August 16, an aggrieved customer of E-Orange Md, Taherul Islam, filed a fraud case with Gulshan police in presence of 37 other customers who testified against the accused.
Walton Plaza inks deal with Walcart
Walton Plaza, sales outlet of Walton, has become an exclusive partner of Walcart, an upcoming e-commerce platform of the same group.
Now Walton customers can easily purchase various electronics and electrical products, digital devices, home appliances from around 400 Walton Plazas across the country and get necessary support through Walcart.
Thursday, both organisations inked a deal in the city in this connection.
Read: Walton, Walcart announce exclusive partnership
Walcart Managing Director Sabiha Jarin Orona and Walton Plaza Chief Executive Officer Mohammad Rayhan signed the agreement.
"Walton Plaza has been selling Walton products and providing services to the customers for a long time. With the formal agreement, Walton Plaza has joined Walcart as its exclusive partner. Now customers can easily purchase various products and get services from Walton Plaza through Walcart," Sabiha said.
READ: Walton compressor gets ACMI award
"E-commerce is an excellent solution for busy people in the modern world. However, customers want reliable e-commerce companies in Bangladesh. We believe, Walcart will be a good example in this sector. Walton Plaza customers across the country will get their required products and services from here," Rayhan said.
Walcart will have over 150 types of products and services, including fashion, lifestyle, electronics, food and beverages, and sports of top and reputed domestic and global brands, according to a press release.
Walton, Walcart announce exclusive partnership
Walton Hi-Tech Industries has become an exclusive partner of Walcart, an upcoming e-commerce platform.
Walcart customers will be able to purchase Walton products and get the necessary support.
READ: Walton gets Sheikh Kamal sports award
The e-commerce platform, a subsidiary of Walton Group, will be launched soon. Walton Hi-Tech Industries Managing Director Golam Murshed and Walcart Managing Director Sabiha Jarin Orona signed a deal in this connection Thursday.
"Online shopping has gained popularity all over the world with technological advancement. Namely, e-commerce is playing a big part in delivering necessary products to consumers during crises like the Covid-19 pandemic. But the e-commerce sector in Bangladesh has not yet been able to gain the full trust of customers. We hope Walcart will fill this gap," Murshed said.
READ: Walton Primo ZX4 Review with Price in Bangladesh
"Walcart will have over 150 categories of products and services, including fashion, lifestyle, electronics, food and beverages, and sports. Besides Walton, customers will get the products of other top and reputed domestic and global brands. With the formal agreement, we have got Walton as our exclusive partner. We will keep signing deals with other local and foreign brands and companies," Sabiha said.
Stakeholders want coordinated policy, regulations to foster e-commerce in Bangladesh
Transparent automation, easy regulations, access to finance, inter-ministerial coordination, easy tax structure, cross border digital commerce trade facilitation are key to foster e-commerce in Bangladesh, stakeholders said at a discussion on Saturday.
The discussion titled “Building a Sustainable Ecosystem for E-commerce” was organized by Dhaka Chamber of Commerce & Industry (DCCI). Commerce Secretary Tapan Kanti Ghosh joined the discussion as the chief guest.
DCCI President Rizwan Rahman said the e-commerce ecosystem saw a massive vibe in recent past.
Also read: Muted response to e-commerce SOP reflects recent troubles in the industry
"Despite we have seen some challenges the sector is facing recently, but with the intervention of the government, regulators and stakeholders a sustainable development will come in the sector," he said.
According to an estimated data, in 2020 transaction in the e-commerce business was about USD2 billion, which may increase up to USD2.5 billion in the current year.
In 2020 transaction in only f-commerce sector was about 320 crore taka.
He also said that 15% VAT imposed on e-commerce sector may hamper the growth of small investors in this sector. Moreover if international market leaders like Amazon comes in our market, it may create opportunity for local CMSME traders and manufacturers, he said.
Commerce Secretary Tapan Kanti Ghosh said private sector is playing the dominant role in the economy.
Also read: Digital Commerce Policy, Lockdown, Eid: Perfect storm for e-commerce?
In the e-commerce, reliability is the key issue to help this sector to grow, he said.
"Government does not want to impose strong regulations upon the sector so that small entrepreneurs can come on board easily. Recently the Escrow system to see the compliance has been introduced but the number of transactions fell down."
He suggested for a coordinated platform to overview the compliance and said that government is working hard to create a congenial regulatory atmosphere for e-commerce business.
Barrister K. M. Tanjib-ul-Alam, Head of the Chamber, Tanjib Alam and Associates also underscored importance of reliability for a sustainable market.
He urged for a proper policy and guidelines with a scope of reward and punishment.
"Government should come forward to safeguard the ecosystem, he added. Government should upgrade the national postal system so that ecommerce platform can utilize this trusted system," he said.
Fahim Ahmed, President, Pathao said policy and regulatory guidelines are needed for a sustainable ecosystem.
"Unsuccessful ecommerce platforms with a huge liability and discounting method cannot sustain in the market as it is not economically viable. Based on short term investment and huge discount-giving model may create a bad name to the industries. For creating infrastructure, technological assistance and to create confidence of consumers long term investment is needed," he said.
Khorshed Anwar, Deputy Managing Director, Eastern Bank Limited said small e-commerce, start-ups or f-commerce entrepreneurs are sometimes deprived of access to finance due to lack of documentation. We are working on the issue and do training programmes for the small start-ups.
Khondoker Tasfin Alam, Chief Operating Officer, Daraz Bangladesh said excessive discounting model is not sustainable.
Customer readiness as well as seller’s readiness is equally important. Sometimes wrong model can become famous for the time being but it is not sustainable but will hamper the ecosystem.
He also said that Daraz Bangladesh has already invested BDT 500 crore in last two years in logistic infrastructure. He lastly emphasized on improving products quality for sustainability.
Ashish Chakraborty, Chief Information Officer, Nagad said Mobile Financial service plays a vital role in ecommerce.
Customers from rural area can get products from anywhere in the country using mobile wallet. Bangladesh Bank now allows small investors having NID to be on board which is a good move, he said.
For the growth, he emphasized on full automation of this sector and this system will ensure service delivery information.
Muhammed Abdul Wahed Tomal, General Secretary, e-CAB said that the ecommerce sector in Bangladesh has got a tremendous growth right at this moment which was supposed to come in 2030.
"The growth momentum came at a faster rate due to Covid, he informed. E-commerce is an integrated sector where agencies like Bangladesh Bank, NBR, LGRD, Commerce Ministry, ICT Division all are involved. Regarding Escrow service he suggested to make it more automated and easy functioning."
Khairul Majid Mahmud, Director, DCCI, Sameer Sattar, former Director, DCCI and Riyadh Hossain, former Vice President, DCCI also spoke on the occasion. DCCI Senior Vice President N.K.A. Mobin, FCS, FCA gave vote of thanks.
Daraz introduces Seller Development Program for consumers
Daraz Bangladesh has recently introduced a ‘Seller Development Program’ to enhance the buying experience of the consumer.
The unique program introduced by Daraz focuses on strengthening the buying and selling experience for the existing customers and sellers.
Read: Daraz ropes in Hasinul as chief corporate affairs officer
With the launch of the program, the largest e-commerce platform will promote exceptional sellers while keeping the customers assured and untroubled.
Daraz through this program will ensure that sellers who are not fit for working with Daraz yet are being filtered out properly. Sellers providing top-notch quality goods and services will not be liable for the errors of the few other vendors.
Read: Realme partners with Daraz to develop online channel, sales
“Trust is a critical factor in e-commerce and it alters with every purchasing decision of the consumers. We believe that the Seller Development Program will be effective in building a healthy and sustainable relationship with the consumers accompanied by the support of brilliant sellers,” said Kamrul Hasan, Commercial Director of Seller Marketplace and Business Intelligence of Daraz Bangladesh.
Muted response to e-commerce SOP reflects recent troubles in the industry
The Commerce Ministry has recently completed its task of formulating a set of Standard Operating Procedures for the e-commerce industry.
Yet the muted response to the SOPs reflect the significantly deeper concerns surrounding the industry, that have come to light recently in the form of troubling revelations about some of its biggest players, most notably Evaly, that have come straight from investigations carried out by an authority as important as Bangladesh Bank.
Given the seriousness of some of these concerns and allegations, a set of guidelines rooted in global best practices, that would essentially allow the rapidly growing industry to regulate itself.
Firms would be responsible for implementing the SOPs within their own organisations, while a failure to do so would not carry the threat of incurring a legal penalty. None of the SOPs in that sense would be legally binding.
Also read: Potential of e-commerce hemmed in by bottlenecks
Although this kind of light-touch approach can be entertained in a situation where the assumption is that one is dealing with good faith-actors, the recent revelations regarding Evaly, that include possible money laundering, have effectively blown the credibility of such a working assumption out of the water.
It suggests the more prudent route forward for harnessing the sector's potential may well be regulatory oversight by a competent authority.