Chief Adviser’s Special Envoy on International Affairs Lutfey Siddiqi said on Tuesday that PayPal has shown interest in entering the Bangladesh market, but the process will take time.
He said he met PayPal representatives during the World Economic Forum (WEF) Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland. According to Siddiqi, PayPal is interested in Bangladesh in principle, but it follows a long and careful process before entering any new country. He warned that this interest should not be misunderstood as immediate entry.
Siddiqi shared this information while briefing the media at the Foreign Service Academy. Chief Adviser’s Press Secretary Shafiqul Alam was also present.
He said discussions with PayPal have been ongoing for many years, but the company had not been willing to engage earlier. After repeated requests, PayPal sent a senior team to Bangladesh in December, which stayed for several days and met entrepreneurs, the Bangladesh Bank Governor, and ICT officials.
Siddiqi said this was his first direct high-level meeting with PayPal. While the company is interested, it will first complete internal discussions, including board-level decisions. Until then, PayPal does not want any public assumption that it is definitely coming to Bangladesh.
However, Siddiqi said he personally believes PayPal is confident about Bangladesh’s future. He added that improved governance has increased the company’s confidence, along with the country’s strong demographic potential.
During the WEF meeting, Siddiqi attended 18 to 20 bilateral meetings with ministers and heads of government. He also joined several private roundtables and spoke at public panels to promote Bangladesh’s foreign policy and economic goals.
On the sidelines, he met with senior leaders from Canada, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United States, the World Bank, IMF, WTO, WHO, UN agencies, and several other countries.
Siddiqi said his meeting with US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent focused on tariff issues between Bangladesh and the United States. He explained that Bangladesh has made progress on reforms related to trade, business environment, and customs efficiency, which has helped reduce a trade deficit of about USD six billion.
He said the main challenge now is gaining attention at the highest political level in the US. However, ongoing discussions have given hope that Bangladesh may receive some tariff relief soon.
Finally, Siddiqi said Bangladesh is gaining international recognition for its labor reforms, especially from the ILO, EU, and UK, both for the reforms themselves and for the democratic way they are being implemented.
