Sending money from the UAE to Bangladesh: the payments stack
Sending AED 735 from the UAE to Bangladesh cost 7.72% of the amount on average in Q3 2025, across 9 services in the World Bank's Remittance Prices Worldwide survey. Payouts in Bangladesh typically run over BEFTN (Bangladesh Electronic Funds Transfer Network), NPSB (National Payment Switch Bangladesh); between now and the end of 2027 there are 9 weekdays when banks in the UAE are closed but Bangladesh keeps paying out, so the payout balance has to be funded before them.
| Average cost to send | 7.72% of AED 735 (Q3 2025, World Bank RPW) source |
| Money transfer operators | 7.72% across 9 services |
| Collect in UAE | Aani, UAEFTS, IPI (Immediate Payment Instruction), UAEDDS (UAE Direct Debit System) |
| Pay out in Bangladesh | BEFTN (Bangladesh Electronic Funds Transfer Network), NPSB (National Payment Switch Bangladesh), BD-RTGS |
What it costs to send AED 735
The World Bank surveyed 9 services sending from the UAE to Bangladesh from 15 August 2025 to 22 August 2025. The average total cost, fees plus the FX margin, was 7.72% of the amount sent; money transfer operators averaged 7.72%. source
Bank and operator averages are worked out from the survey's provider types.
The send side: the UAE
- Under the Exchange Business Regulation (Circular 7/2025, effective 26 June 2025) a Category I licence covers currency exchange, remittances and WPS salary processing, Category II covers currency exchange and remittances, Category III currency exchange only, and Category IV remittances through digital channels only, with no cash-in or cash-out and currency conversion only within the digital remittance. source
- Exchange businesses that are limited liability companies need minimum paid-up capital of AED 25 million and a bank guarantee to the CBUAE of AED 50 million for Categories I to III or AED 25 million for Category IV; a Category IV licensee must be a limited liability company, and the CBUAE can allow 100% non-UAE ownership for that category. source
- The Retail Payment Services and Card Schemes Regulation (Circular 15/2021) has four licence categories; cross-border fund transfer services are available under Category I and Category II, Category I adds payment token services, and Category IV covers payment initiation and account information services. source
Licences, sponsor banks, collections, ramps and KYC providers: sending from the UAE.
The payout side: Bangladesh
| Payout partner | What it does in Bangladesh | Source |
|---|---|---|
| dLocal · our guide | Payouts V3 pays BDT to bank accounts (account number, branch code, address and phone) and to bKash and Nagad wallets for B2C, B2B and P2P flows, identifying beneficiaries by their 17-digit National Identity Card number. | source |
| TerraPay · our guide | Its API lists bKash, Rocket and Nagad as Bangladesh wallet endpoints; for Bangladesh bank transactions only the NPSB scheme is allowed for quotes, and routing numbers are required. | source |
| Thunes · our guide | Its money transfer API pays BDT in Bangladesh to bank accounts over NPSB and BEFTN (BEFTN credits T+1 when sent before the bank cut-off), to mobile wallets and for cash pickup. | source |
| Nium · our guide | Pays BDT to all banks in Bangladesh same day between 07:30 and 22:00 local time, Sunday to Thursday, and to bKash and Rocket wallets in real time 24x7, up to BDT 50,000 per wallet payout. | source |
| BRAC Saajan | FCA-authorised payment institution offering money transfer operators and wallets a single API for payouts to Bangladesh by cash pickup, bank transfer, instant transfer and wallet transfer, built on its own correspondent banking partnerships. | source |
| bKash | MFS wallet endpoint: remittances reach bKash accounts through authorised and listed foreign banks, MTOs and exchange houses settling via banks in Bangladesh, and recipients through legal channels get the 2.5% government incentive. | source |
Licensing, local banks, stablecoin ramps, FX and KYC in Bangladesh: launching payments in Bangladesh.
Payout rails in Bangladesh
| Rail | Operator | What matters for payouts | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| BEFTN (Bangladesh Electronic Funds Transfer Network) | Bangladesh Bank | Interbank credit and debit transfers, including foreign and domestic remittances and payroll, cleared in processing sessions and settled on a deferred net basis on banks' accounts at Bangladesh Bank; entries that fall on a weekend or holiday settle on the next business day. | source |
| NPSB (National Payment Switch Bangladesh) | Bangladesh Bank | Interbank switch for ATM, POS, QR, internet banking fund transfers (IBFT) and interoperable bank and MFS transfers. Individual IBFT is capped at Tk 3,00,000 per transaction and Tk 10,00,000 a day, and corporate IBFT at Tk 5,00,000 per transaction and Tk 25,00,000 a day; Bangladesh Bank removed the cap on the number of daily IBFT transactions in April 2022, and banks may set lower limits. | source |
| BD-RTGS | Bangladesh Bank | Real-time gross settlement launched in October 2015 for high-value transfers of Tk 1,00,000 or more between customers; government payments and inland foreign currency transactions (six currencies) have no minimum. | source |
Holiday gaps to plan for, to December 2027
Weekdays when one side of the corridor is closed. On the 9 dates when the UAE is closed and Bangladesh is open, the payout balance has to already hold enough to cover them. On the 14 dates when Bangladesh is closed, instant rails may still pay out.
| Date | UAE | Bangladesh | What it means |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wed 2 Dec 2026 | National Day (Eid Al Etihad) | Open | Prefund Bangladesh the day before: no funding from the UAE, payouts continue |
| Thu 3 Dec 2026 | National Day (second day) | Open | Prefund Bangladesh the day before: no funding from the UAE, payouts continue |
| Wed 16 Dec 2026 | Open | Victory Day | Bangladesh banks closed: only always-on rails pay out |
| Fri 25 Dec 2026 | Open | Christmas Day | Bangladesh banks closed: only always-on rails pay out |
| Thu 31 Dec 2026 | Open | Bank holiday (annual closing) | Bangladesh banks closed: only always-on rails pay out |
| Fri 1 Jan 2027 | New Year's Day | Open | Prefund Bangladesh the day before: no funding from the UAE, payouts continue |
| Fri 5 Mar 2027 | Open | Jumatul Wida (last Friday of Ramadan) | Bangladesh banks closed: only always-on rails pay out |
| Tue 9 Mar 2027 | Eid Al Fitr (Ramadan 30 or Eid day 1) | Open | Prefund Bangladesh the day before: no funding from the UAE, payouts continue |
| Wed 10 Mar 2027 | Eid Al Fitr | Eid-ul-Fitr | Both closed |
| Thu 11 Mar 2027 | Eid Al Fitr | Open | Prefund Bangladesh the day before: no funding from the UAE, payouts continue |
| Fri 12 Mar 2027 | Eid Al Fitr (only if Ramadan lasts 30 days) | Open | Prefund Bangladesh the day before: no funding from the UAE, payouts continue |
| Fri 26 Mar 2027 | Open | Independence and National Day | Bangladesh banks closed: only always-on rails pay out |
| Tue 13 Apr 2027 | Open | Chaitra Sankranti (Rangamati, Khagrachari and Bandarban only) | Bangladesh banks closed: only always-on rails pay out |
| Wed 14 Apr 2027 | Open | Bengali New Year (Pohela Boishakh 1434) | Bangladesh banks closed: only always-on rails pay out |
| Mon 17 May 2027 | Eid Al Adha (day 2) | Eid-ul-Azha | Both closed |
| Tue 18 May 2027 | Eid Al Adha (day 3) | Open | Prefund Bangladesh the day before: no funding from the UAE, payouts continue |
| Thu 20 May 2027 | Open | Buddha Purnima | Bangladesh banks closed: only always-on rails pay out |
| Wed 16 Jun 2027 | Open | Ashura | Bangladesh banks closed: only always-on rails pay out |
| Thu 1 Jul 2027 | Open | Bank holiday (half-yearly closing) | Bangladesh banks closed: only always-on rails pay out |
| Thu 5 Aug 2027 | Open | July Mass Uprising Day | Bangladesh banks closed: only always-on rails pay out |
| Wed 25 Aug 2027 | Open | Janmashtami | Bangladesh banks closed: only always-on rails pay out |
| Thu 2 Dec 2027 | National Day (Eid Al Etihad) | Open | Prefund Bangladesh the day before: no funding from the UAE, payouts continue |
| Fri 3 Dec 2027 | National Day (second day) | Open | Prefund Bangladesh the day before: no funding from the UAE, payouts continue |
| Thu 16 Dec 2027 | Open | Victory Day | Bangladesh banks closed: only always-on rails pay out |
| Fri 31 Dec 2027 | Open | Bank holiday (annual closing) | Bangladesh banks closed: only always-on rails pay out |
Full calendars: United Arab Emirates and Bangladesh. Size the buffer with the corridor runway calculator.
Funding the corridor
- First Abu Dhabi Bank moved its UAE offices to a Monday to Friday working week with a Saturday and Sunday weekend from 3 January 2022, following UAE Government and CBUAE guidelines, in line with the federal government's Saturday and Sunday weekend. source
- Islamic public holidays (Eid Al Fitr, Arafah Day, Eid Al Adha, Hijri New Year and the Prophet's birthday) are set by moon sighting, and under Cabinet Resolution No. 27 of 2024 a public holiday is not moved when it falls on a weekend or another holiday; National Day is 2 and 3 December. source
- Under the Post-Fund modality the Bangladeshi bank pays out taka first and takes reimbursement in foreign currency from its foreign counterpart within the time frame of their tie-up, not more than T+2 days; the Pre-Fund modality (formerly EFT) is the prefunded route. source
- Bangladesh Bank's RTGS schedule from September 2025 runs customer taka transfers from 10:00 to 17:00 and interbank taka transfers to 17:15, with foreign currency transfers from 10:00 to 16:00 (customer) and 16:30 (interbank). source
- Since September 2026 (FEPD-2 Circular No. 05), foreign currency remittances received through exchange houses and IMTOs can also be credited to Personal Foreign Currency and Non-resident Foreign Currency Deposit accounts. source
Running the corridor
Polynopsis shows every balance on both sides of this corridor in one live position: the collection accounts in UAE, the payout partners and banks in Bangladesh and any stablecoin in between. It warns before the Bangladesh balance runs dry, holidays included. See how it works.
Frequently asked questions
How much does it cost to send money from the UAE to Bangladesh?
The World Bank's survey put the average total cost of sending AED 735 at 7.72% in Q3 2025, across 9 services. Money transfer operators averaged 7.72%.
Which rails pay out in Bangladesh?
Local payouts run over BEFTN (Bangladesh Electronic Funds Transfer Network), NPSB (National Payment Switch Bangladesh), BD-RTGS.
When do I need to prefund Bangladesh payouts ahead of holidays?
Between now and December 2027 there are 9 weekdays when the UAE is closed and Bangladesh is open, the first on Wed 2 Dec 2026. The payout balance has to cover those days before they start.
Related corridors
Sources
- World Bank, Remittance Prices Worldwide dataset · World Bank
- Cabinet Resolution No. (27) of 2024 Concerning the Public Holidays in the State · UAE Legislation
- Public holidays · The Official Portal of the UAE Government
- Holidays of Bank/FIs 2026 · Bangladesh Bank
- DOS Circular Letter No. 20: List of holidays for the year 2026 · Bangladesh Bank
Know where all your money is.
Polynopsis gives cross-border payment teams one live position across every bank, payout partner, exchange and wallet, including money in flight, and warns before a corridor runs dry.