ISLAMABAD: PayPal has expressed in-principle interest in entering the Bangladesh market, but any move would take time due to the multinational financial technology company’s lengthy internal procedures. This was stated by the Chief Adviser’s Special Envoy on International Affairs Lutfey Siddiqi, state-run Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha reported Tuesday.
Speaking at a media briefing at the Foreign Service Academy after returning from the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland, Siddiqi said he held a meeting with PayPal on the sidelines of the forum, marking the first time he engaged directly with the company at a high level.
“The company is now, in principle, interested in entering the Bangladesh market,” Siddiqi said, adding that internal discussions, including deliberations at the board level, would take place before any decision is finalized.
He stressed that this interest "should not be misreported as immediate entry since the company follows a lengthy process before entering any new market."
He cautioned that PayPal did not want “any perception to be created that PayPal is definitively coming to Bangladesh” until those processes are completed, BSS reported.
Siddiqi said discussions between Bangladeshi authorities and PayPal had been ongoing for many years, but the company had previously been reluctant to engage.
After repeated requests, he said, PayPal sent a senior-level team to Bangladesh in December, which spent four to five days holding meetings with local entrepreneurs, the Bangladesh Bank governor, and officials from the information and communication technology sector.
"However, for the first time, I held the high-level meeting directly with PayPal ... while PayPal is interested, the company is going to start its process to enter the Bangladesh market," Siddiqi said, adding that internal discussions and debates will take place within the company, including deliberations at the board level.
Sharing his personal assessment, Siddiqi said PayPal was now fully convinced about Bangladesh’s prospects, citing improved governance as a key factor strengthening the company’s confidence.
Siddiqi said he participated in around 20 pre-scheduled bilateral meetings at ministerial or head-of-government level during the Davos forum. At the invitation of the president and chief executive officer of the World Economic Forum, Borge Brende, he also joined several private roundtables and spoke at three public panels.
Meetings at WEF
On the sidelines of the meeting, Siddiqi held talks with senior international figures, including the Canadian finance minister, Saudi Arabian ministers, the Egyptian tourism minister, the heads of the International Monetary Fund, World Bank, World Trade Organization, World Health Organization and International Organization for Migration, as well as senior officials from the United States, the United Kingdom and the United Nations.
He said discussions with the United States treasury secretary focused on reciprocal tariff negotiations, noting that Bangladesh’s reform agenda aligns with United States concerns over non-tariff barriers, ease of doing business, and port and customs efficiency.
As a result, Siddiqi said Bangladesh had reduced a trade deficit that initially stood at about $6 billion. He added that Bangladesh had received cautious reassurance that the current 20% reciprocal tariff could be improved, with any formal announcement expected later in the week or early next week.
On labor reforms, Siddiqi said Bangladesh was receiving international recognition from global partners for both the substance of reforms and the democratic process through which they are being implemented, according to BSS.
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