2. Problem
● Building financial trust, confidence, and literacy through design
● Navigating the day-to-day using only cash is costly.
● In Bangladesh, only around 15% of the population has access to formal banking
services.
3. Solution
● The goal was to engage a wide range of customers, including users who have
low levels of literacy and limited smartphone experience
● This smart phone app has been downloaded by over 10 million users who
manage their finances through subtle cues and thoughtful interactions.
● This smart phone app has been downloaded by over 10 million users who
manage their finances through subtle cues and thoughtful interactions.
4. Impact
● In the app, each service—exchanging money, buying airtime, cashing out—has
an icon and each icon has a corresponding color to orient users and reinforce
clarity at every step of the way.
● While interviewing potential users, we found that even though digital savviness
was generally low, the ability to learn quickly was high—and the real barrier of
entry for people was the fear of failure or pride in figuring it out on their own.
5. Action
● We anticipated possible roadblocks and designed to make the interaction as
frictionless as possible: a back button ensures customers never have to start
their transaction over; a QR code reader automatically inputs the merchant
number, minimizing errors; and buttons surface the most commonly used
transaction amounts and contacts, allowing users to move on without typing.
6. Conclusion
● Selective about moments of delight : In order to safeguard convenience and
ease, moments of delight were chosen carefully. The design experience doesn’t
draw much attention to itself. There are no frills to trip over, the goal was for
users to glide through easy, effortless loops of activity.
● Building trust: Launched in May 2018, bKash’s smartphone app is now in the
hands of millions, showcasing the impact that technology can play in making
digital financial services more accessible and inclusive.
