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On 10 September 2026, LightCastle Partners and Meta hosted “Agami: Bangladesh AI Innovation Day” at the Sheraton Hotel, Dhaka. Leaders from government, industry, the diplomatic community and the entrepreneurship ecosystem discussed a practical question: what do small businesses need to grow in an economy shaped by AI and digital tools?
The day brought one concrete answer. Businesses in Bangladesh can now pay for Meta ads using bKash.
Removing a payment barrier 💳
Until now, advertisers on Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp could only pay with foreign-currency-enabled credit cards, of which Bangladesh has roughly 3 million. Many small and first-time advertisers simply could not advertise.
bKash has more than 82 million registered users, close to half the population. Business owners can now add bKash in their Meta Ads account settings and fund campaigns without a credit card, foreign currency or extra charges.
“With local payment methods now available, many more entrepreneurs can use these tools to build their businesses and grow,” said Ruzan Sarwar, Head of Public Policy for Bangladesh and Nepal at Meta.
Where the opportunity sits
Rehan Asif Asad, ICT Adviser to the Prime Minister, noted that only 70 million of Bangladesh’s 140 million mobile users have a smartphone: “No other country in the world has 70 million connected phones without data and that is a huge opportunity.” He described government’s role as creating “predictable legal frameworks, fair financial terms, and robust public infrastructure.”
Fahim Ahmed, CEO of Pathao, added that Facebook powers 81% of digital commerce in Bangladesh. Pathao supports over 200,000 merchants, 51% of them women, with 72% of buyers outside Dhaka. It is a commerce economy that is already decentralised, increasingly women-led and built on social platforms.
Tehara Punchihewa, Public Policy Manager for APAC at Meta, shared key findings from a recent report on AI for business. Most SMEs across Asia-Pacific already use at least one AI tool and plan to adopt more, and a majority say AI helps them compete with larger companies. The interest is there. What businesses need is guidance on using these tools well.
Building skills through the Small Business Growth Academy
That is the focus of the Small Business Growth Academy (SBGA), Meta’s upskilling programme running across 12 Asia-Pacific countries. LightCastle Partners is delivering it in Bangladesh, aiming to train more than 1,000 SMEs on digital marketing and AI-powered tools. Training is underway and tailored to each business’s stage of growth.
H.E. Brent T. Christensen, United States Ambassador to Bangladesh, said the Academy “will boost AI adoption and tech skills of small business owners.” Taabeer Ather, Economic Impact Regional Lead for Asia-Pacific at Meta, added: “The tools alone are not enough… so more entrepreneurs can move from small to scale.”
What comes next
Agami brought together three things growth depends on: a payment method people already use, practical skills training, and a policy environment that lets both scale.
Technology creates the opening. Entrepreneurs grow when access, skills and confidence come together.
LightCastle Partners will continue delivering SBGA training across Bangladesh over the coming months. Follow LightCastle Partners for programme updates and insights.
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