To bring the country's fast-growing e-commerce sector under a legal framework, the commerce ministry has drafted a law with provisions for punitive measures against fraud and deceptions.
The draft on the proposed Digital Commerce Authority Act (DCAA) is scheduled to be scrutinised by the Cabinet Review Committee today (Thursday).
When contacted, a senior official said the commerce ministry will finalise the draft after accommodating opinions from the high-powered committee, before sending it to the cabinet division for approval.
Meanwhile, the ministry mobilised opinions from the stakeholders to fine-tune the proposed law.
In the draft, a Digital Commerce Authority Office has been proposed to be established, comprising an executive chairman and four members.
The office will be responsible for resolving disputes and preventing crime in the entire e-commerce ecosystem.
The authority will conduct necessary proceedings, including taking measures to register organisations conducting digital commerce, receiving buyer and seller complaints, and taking measures to monitor and investigate complaints filed by the customers.
The proposed act includes provisions for punitive measures for deceiving buyers or customers through false or misleading advertisements or sales promotions.
Besides, the act proposes substantial amounts of penalties, including a Tk 0.1 million fine for non-cooperation or obstruction of on-site inspections, monitoring and supervision of online buying and selling activities by the e-commerce companies concerned.
Earlier, the commerce ministry decided to prepare the Digital Commerce Act (DCA) 2023. However, the ministry instead prepared the DCAA at the request of stakeholders in the e-commerce sector.
Contacted, a high official at the commerce ministry said the law is being prepared in line with the international standards. The ministry will finalise it after incorporating the necessary suggestions and opinions.
Currently, the country has no law to govern the growing e-commerce sector. However, it does have the Digital Commerce Policy-2018 and its amendment in 2020, and the Digital Commerce Operational Guide-2021.
The official talked about a legal vacuum in preventing fraud by dot-coms.
In the face of massive e-commerce frauds and scams in 2021, the authorities rushed to discipline the burgeoning sector thriving since the pandemic-led shutdown.
However, the countermeasures were late to contain the damages and stop the collapses of key e-shops such as Evaly, Dhamaka, e-Orange, Sirajganj Shop, Aladiner Prodip, Boom Boom, Adyen Mart, Needs, Qcoom.com and Alesha Mart.
Subsequently, the government mandated the Digital Business Identification (DBID) system.
The authorities said they are also working to introduce a central complaints management system (CCMS) to be developed by the ICT Division.
According to the E-Commerce Association of Bangladesh (ECAB), e-commerce or digital commerce journey started in the country in 1999. However, the e-commerce journey began full-fledged and professional 10 years later, in 2009.
The growth of the sector started in 2014. The following year in 2015, the ECAB was recognised as an organisation.
There are around 2,754 e-commerce companies under the e-cab. According to the commerce ministry, there are around 2,500 digital commerce companies in the country.
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