Bangladesh Bank has disconnected Digi e-Pay, a payment service operated by private payment system operator Digi Infotech Limited, from the National Payment Switch Bangladesh (NPSB) after an audit found that its transaction software and servers could be accessed from India.

The central bank took the action after its audit team detected that Digi e-Pay’s transaction-related systems were accessible from outside Bangladesh.

Bangladesh Bank Executive Director and Spokesperson Arief Hossain Khan said allowing access from abroad to the transaction software and servers of a financial service provider operating in Bangladesh posed a security risk.

“Having access from another country to the transaction software and servers of a company operating in Bangladesh is risky. Our audit team detected such access, and that is why they were disconnected from NPSB,” he said.

He said Bangladesh Bank would decide on further action after completing its investigation.

Based on the findings, the central bank will determine whether Digi e-Pay should remain permanently disconnected from NPSB or whether action should be taken against its payment system operator licence.

Digi e-Pay provides technology support for transactions involving banks, mobile financial service providers and cardholders. It also provides payment-processing infrastructure to intermediaries collecting service fees on behalf of government and private-sector organisations.

The company had been using Bangladesh Bank’s NPSB infrastructure to process part of those transactions.

Digi e-Pay has acknowledged that a development team in India works on its software and applications and has access to its system.

Shafkat Matin, acting managing director of Digi Infotech, said the company engaged developers in India because it could not find the required expertise locally.

“We do not have developers for this work in Bangladesh, so we have a developer team in India. New services and institutions have to be integrated into the system regularly. They have access, but they do not have full control,” he said.

Matin maintained that although the Indian developers had access to the system, they did not have full control over it.

He said the company had explained the arrangement to Bangladesh Bank officials and was working to address the regulator’s concerns.

“We have presented the matter to Bangladesh Bank officials. They are reviewing it, and we are also trying to resolve the issue,” he said.

Operated by Bangladesh Bank, NPSB is a key national payment infrastructure that facilitates interbank card, ATM and other digital transactions among banks and financial service providers.