Criminal penalties, 45 days remaining

Bangla QR Mandatory Adoption.

June 30, 2026. All proprietary QR codes must be replaced with the unified Bangla QR standard. Non-compliance carries criminal penalties under the Payment Systems Act, up to BDT 30 lakh fine and up to 3 years imprisonment. There is no grace period.

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Time remaining

Days

Jun 30

2026

Grace period

Non-compliance penalties

BDT 30 lakh fine (~$27,000)

Up to 3 years imprisonment

Payment Systems Act enforcement

What is it

Bangla QR: Unified QR Payment Standard

Bangla QR is Bangladesh Bank's unified QR code standard for all digital payments. It replaces the current fragmented landscape (where bKash, Nagad, Rocket, and each bank maintain separate, incompatible QR codes) with a single interoperable standard based on EMV QR specifications.

Today, a merchant may need 5-6 different QR code stickers. With Bangla QR, one code works for every bank app and every MFS wallet. Any customer can scan any merchant's Bangla QR code using any payment application.

Bangladesh Bank has mandated adoption with criminal penalties, the strictest enforcement mechanism available, signaling that this is not a suggestion. Every proprietary QR code must be removed and replaced by June 30, 2026.

Authority

BPSS (Payment Systems Division)

Deadline

June 30, 2026

Penalties

BDT 30L + 3 years

Enforcement

Criminal penalties. Not just fines.

The Payment Systems Act provides Bangladesh Bank with criminal enforcement powers for Bangla QR non-compliance. Responsible officers face imprisonment.

BDT 30 Lakh

Maximum fine

Approximately USD 27,000. Imposed on the institution for failure to adopt the unified Bangla QR standard by the deadline.

3 Years

Maximum imprisonment

Responsible officers (typically the CTO, Head of Digital Banking, or compliance officers) face personal criminal liability.

Both

Fine + imprisonment

The court may impose both the monetary fine and imprisonment simultaneously. No grace period after June 30, 2026.

Scope of compliance

Who must adopt Bangla QR?

Banks with QR Payments

All scheduled banks offering QR-based payment acceptance or generation. Must replace bank-specific QR with unified Bangla QR.

MFSPs (bKash, Nagad, Rocket)

All mobile financial service providers must replace proprietary QR codes with the unified standard. Largest migration effort.

Payment Service Providers

PSPs, payment aggregators, and fintech companies offering QR payment solutions must adopt the Bangla QR specification.

Large Merchants

Merchants with existing proprietary QR infrastructure must replace all QR displays with unified Bangla QR codes.

QR Solution Vendors

Companies providing QR code generation, printing, or management services must update to the Bangla QR specification.

Payment System Operators

Entities operating payment switching or settlement systems must support the Bangla QR transaction routing standard.

Implementation partner

Quick-turn Bangla QR implementation.

45 days is not enough time to build from scratch. KaritKarma provides rapid implementation using production-ready payment infrastructure that is already live.

IntraPay

Domestic Payment Switch

Sovereign payment switching infrastructure for domestic transactions. Routes Bangla QR transactions between banks and MFS providers. Sub-millisecond settlement.

EMV-QR specification compliance
Inter-bank QR routing
Inter-MFS QR routing
Sub-millisecond settlement
Sovereign infrastructure
Bangladesh-owned and operated

Aegis

Real-Time QR Fraud Scoring

Sub-50ms fraud detection on every Bangla QR transaction. 3-layer cascade with 80+ rules, including Bangladesh-specific patterns for hundi corridors, SIM swap, and agent fraud.

Sub-50ms decisions
80+ fraud detection rules
Hundi corridor detection
SIM swap risk scoring
Agent fraud profiling
Consortium learning

4-8

Weeks implementation

15+

Years payment expertise

Live

bKash integration

Sub-ms

Settlement latency

Implementation roadmap

How to comply with Bangla QR mandate

Six steps. 45 days. No room for delay.

Audit current QR payment infrastructure

Inventory all proprietary QR codes in use: merchant-facing QR codes, in-app QR generation, QR scanning capabilities, and QR-based transaction processing flows. Document all systems that need migration.

Assess Bangla QR specification gaps

Compare current QR implementation against the EMV-based Bangla QR specification. Identify gaps in QR encoding, transaction routing, settlement, and interoperability.

Deploy Bangla QR-compliant payment routing

Implement IntraPay as the domestic switching layer for inter-bank and inter-MFS Bangla QR routing. Pair with Aegis for sub-50ms fraud scoring on every QR transaction before settlement.

Replace proprietary QR codes at merchant locations

Generate new Bangla QR codes for all merchant locations. Replace physical QR displays, update digital QR generation in apps, and ensure all scanning capabilities recognize the unified format.

Test interoperability across all platforms

Verify that your Bangla QR codes can be scanned and processed by all major bank apps and MFS wallets. Test settlement flows, refund handling, and transaction reporting.

Submit compliance certification before June 30, 2026

Generate compliance documentation demonstrating full Bangla QR adoption. Submit certification to Bangladesh Bank before the deadline. Remove all proprietary QR codes. Criminal penalties take effect immediately upon the deadline.

Frequently asked questions

Bangla QR compliance questions

What is Bangla QR and why is it mandatory?

Bangla QR is Bangladesh Bank's unified QR code standard for all digital payments in Bangladesh. It replaces all proprietary QR codes (bKash QR, Nagad QR, bank-specific QR codes) with a single interoperable standard. This means any customer can scan any merchant's Bangla QR code using any bank app or MFS wallet. Bangladesh Bank has mandated adoption by June 30, 2026 under the Payment Systems Act, with criminal penalties for non-compliance.

What are the penalties for Bangla QR non-compliance?

Non-compliance with the Bangla QR mandate carries criminal penalties under the Payment Systems Act of Bangladesh: (1) Monetary fine of up to BDT 30 lakh (approximately USD 27,000); (2) Imprisonment of up to 3 years for responsible officers; (3) Both fine and imprisonment may be imposed simultaneously. These are among the strictest financial technology compliance penalties in Bangladesh.

When is the Bangla QR compliance deadline?

The Bangla QR mandatory adoption deadline is June 30, 2026. As of May 16, 2026, there are approximately 45 days remaining. All payment service providers, banks, mobile financial service operators, and merchants must have migrated from proprietary QR codes to the unified Bangla QR standard by this date.

Who must comply with Bangla QR requirements?

The Bangla QR mandate applies to: (1) All 61 scheduled banks with QR payment capabilities; (2) Mobile financial service providers including bKash, Nagad, and Rocket; (3) Payment service providers and payment system operators; (4) Fintech companies offering QR-based payment solutions; (5) Large merchants with existing proprietary QR infrastructure.

How does Bangla QR differ from existing QR codes?

Current QR payment landscape in Bangladesh is fragmented: bKash has its own QR, Nagad has its own, each bank has proprietary QR codes. Bangla QR replaces all of these with a single unified standard based on EMV QR specifications. One QR code at the merchant, any wallet or bank app can scan and pay.

How can KaritKarma help with Bangla QR implementation?

KaritKarma provides quick-turn Bangla QR implementation. (1) IntraPay for domestic payment switching and Bangla QR routing. (2) Aegis for real-time fraud scoring on QR transactions. (3) Gap assessment against the EMV-QR specification. (4) Migration planning from proprietary QR codes. (5) Technical implementation and certification support. Implementation typically takes 4 to 8 weeks.

Does Bangla QR work for cross-border QR payments?

The June 30, 2026 mandate covers domestic Bangla QR adoption. Cross-border QR interoperability (such as integration with India UPI QR or other ASEAN unified QR networks) is being negotiated separately by Bangladesh Bank and is not part of the June 30, 2026 enforcement deadline. Domestic Bangla QR compliance remains mandatory and must be in place first, with cross-border bridges layered on top after BB completes the bilateral arrangements.

45 days remaining, criminal penalties

BDT 30 lakh fine. 3 years imprisonment. June 30, 2026.

There is no grace period. KaritKarma can implement Bangla QR-compliant payment infrastructure in 4 to 8 weeks. Start today.

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