BMU introduced online payment facilities

Bangladesh Medical University (BMU) has introduced an online payment facility for medical service bills and a range of institutional fees, enabling patients, students, and service recipients to make payments digitally from anywhere, at any time. 

To modernise the university’s financial transactions and move toward a cashless system, the national payment platform EkPay has been integrated, significantly reducing the need to visit bank booths and stand in long queues

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An MoU to implement the initiative was signed today at BMU’s Shaheed Dr. Milton Hall between the university authorities and the Aspire to Innovate (a2i) Programme under the ICT Division. Under this arrangement, users will be able to pay bills and fees via mobile financial services, debit/credit cards, internet banking, and e-wallets, while EkPay will provide the required technical support to ensure smooth and secure transactions, according to a press release.

The event was attended as chief guest by Faiz Ahmad Taiyeb, Special Assistant to the Chief Adviser at the Ministry of Posts, Telecommunications and Information Technology. The programme was chaired by Professor Dr. Md. Shahinul Alam, Acting Vice-Chancellor of BMU. Md. Abdur Rofiq, Project Director (Additional Secretary) of a2i, attended as special guest.

Also present were BMU’s Professor Dr. Md. Abul Kalam Azad (Pro-Vice Chancellor, Administration), Professor Dr. Md. Mujibur Rahman Hawlader (Pro-Vice Chancellor, Research and Development), Professor Nahreen Akhter (Treasurer), a2i’s Head of Program Management Abdullah Al Fahim, Head of Communications Mohammad Safiul Azam, EkPay Consultant Mohammad Shahadat Hossain, Program Implementation Officer Uchan Aoung, along with other senior officials, department heads, and physicians of the university.

In his remarks, Faiz Ahmad Taiyeb said that digitization is essential to making healthcare and education services paperless, automated, and efficient. He noted that the launch of EkPay’s service would reduce patient hardship and accelerate and improve service delivery. 

Stressing the importance of data interoperability, he added that Bangladesh needs a structured mechanism to manage health-related information from birth to death—an initiative that would significantly support research and innovation in the long run.

Professor Dr. Md. Shahinul Alam emphasized that ensuring modern, improved healthcare services remains BMU’s foremost priority. He stated that, with a2i’s support, the university’s financial management system would become more transparent and technologically advanced, and that both parties would continue working jointly to scale and strengthen the initiative.

Md. Abdur Rofiq said the integration of the EkPay gateway would help extend BMU’s services closer to citizens by making payments more convenient and accessible. He described the initiative as a practical step toward building a cashless and citizen-friendly Bangladesh, reducing patients’ time, expenses, and suffering.

Abdullah Al Fahim added that the new system eliminates the need for users to visit banks during fixed hours and wait in lines. Instead, they can pay securely through digital channels from home or any location. This will not only save time and reduce unnecessary crowding and inconvenience, but also improve the hospital’s internal financial transaction management—making it faster, simpler, and more transparent, and ultimately strengthening the overall service delivery process.

Organizers noted that a reliable digital payment mechanism is a vital component of modern healthcare. They said the initiative would make access to medical services easier, reduce patient burdens, enhance transparency and accountability in BMU’s financial operations, and enable a more integrated and modern management system. In the long term, they added, the platform will contribute to building a more efficient, sustainable, and people-centered healthcare management ecosystem.