In Bangladesh, many online buyers pay with bKash, and many more expect a local checkout that takes cards, mobile wallets and internet banking in taka. An auction or marketplace site that only offers international card payments loses them. This guide covers the three Bangladeshi gateway add-ons for a self-hosted BidKing or PrizeX site: bKash, SSLCommerz and aamarPay. It explains how each one confirms a payment, what each needs from you, and the checks to make before launch.
Which gateway does what
All three are gateway add-ons, available from Add-ons in your admin panel. You can switch on one or more of them.
- bKash takes bKash wallet payments only, on bKash's own payment page.
- SSLCommerz is a hosted checkout. It shows whichever methods your SSLCommerz account has enabled, such as cards, mobile wallets and internet banking.
- aamarPay is also a hosted checkout for cards and mobile payments, depending on what your aamarPay account offers.
With any of them, the customer pays on the provider's page, so no card or wallet details touch your server.
bKash
- How it works: the add-on uses bKash's Tokenized Checkout. The customer presses Pay Now, pays on bKash's page, and is sent back to your store.
- How it confirms: when the customer comes back, your site completes the payment with bKash and credits it only if bKash reports it Completed for that request, at its amount and in taka. If that call times out, bKash's status answer decides, so a payment taken in the meantime isn't lost.
- Each payment is tied to its request. A return that names a different bKash payment is refused.
- Taka only. bKash charges in BDT. On a store priced in another currency, the bKash page tells the customer to choose another method, and nothing is sent to bKash.
- Setup: bKash issues merchant credentials for Tokenized Checkout. Enter the App Key, App Secret, Username and Password on the bKash gateway in the admin, and choose sandbox or live.
- The customer needs to come back to your store. Your site completes the bKash payment when the customer returns from bKash's page. If they close the window first, the request stays pending.
- If a payment stays pending, use Check with gateway on Payment requests in the admin. It asks bKash about that payment and settles it only if bKash reports it completed and it matches.
SSLCommerz
- How it confirms: nothing the browser sends is trusted on its own. Your site asks SSLCommerz's validation service about the payment, and credits it only if SSLCommerz marks it valid for this request, at its amount and currency.
- Payments that complete after the customer leaves. The add-on sends SSLCommerz a notification address (IPN) with every payment. If the customer closes the browser before returning, SSLCommerz still notifies your site, and the payment is checked with the validation service and credited the same way.
- No double crediting. Whether the return or the notification arrives first, the payment is settled once.
- A phone number is required. SSLCommerz needs the customer's phone number. A customer without one on their profile is asked to add it before paying.
- Setup: enter your Store ID and Store Password from SSLCommerz, and choose sandbox or live.
- Check with gateway works for SSLCommerz too.
aamarPay
- How it confirms: when the customer returns from aamarPay, your site looks the payment up with aamarPay's transaction search. It credits the payment only if aamarPay's own record shows it successful for this request, at its amount and currency.
- No server notification. aamarPay confirms a payment when the customer comes back to your store. If they close the tab first, the request stays pending until you use Check with gateway, which asks aamarPay and settles the request only if it was paid in full. Look at pending aamarPay requests regularly.
- A phone number is required, as with SSLCommerz.
- Setup: enter your Store Id and Signature Key from aamarPay, and choose sandbox or live.
Testing before you go live
- Use each provider's sandbox first. Make a test payment end to end, and check that it's credited.
- Test a closed window. Pay, then close the tab before returning to the store. With SSLCommerz, the payment should still be credited. With aamarPay, check that Check with gateway finds and settles it.
- Your site needs HTTPS and must be reachable from the internet, so the providers can send customers, and SSLCommerz's notifications, back to it.
Pricing in taka and a Bengali storefront
- Set the store currency to BDT under Settings › Regional. bKash requires it, and every gateway credits a payment only when its currency matches the request.
- Coin price: if your site uses a coin wallet, set what one coin is worth in taka. Keep lot prices, bid steps and Buy Now prices in round numbers.
- Bengali: BidKing, RaffKing and PrizeX ship with a Bengali language file for the storefront and the admin. Our guide to running a multilingual site covers how to set it up and translate your own listings.
Legal and practical checks
- Gambling is broadly prohibited in Bangladesh. Ordinary auctions of goods are sales. Paid-bid formats, raffles, lotteries and paid prize games can be treated as gambling. Don't run them for users in Bangladesh without clear legal advice. The operator is responsible for compliance, so check with a local lawyer before launch.
- Payment providers have their own rules about what you may sell. Check the merchant terms of bKash, SSLCommerz and aamarPay for your business type before you apply.
- Age. BidKing limits sign-up to 18 and over.
Common questions
Can BidKing take bKash payments?
Yes, with the bKash add-on from Add-ons in your admin panel. The customer pays on bKash's own page, and the payment is credited only when bKash reports it completed for that request, at its amount and in taka.
Should I use bKash, SSLCommerz or aamarPay?
You can offer more than one. bKash covers bKash wallet payments. SSLCommerz and aamarPay are hosted checkouts with cards and other methods, depending on your account. SSLCommerz also confirms payments made after the customer leaves, through its notification.
What if a customer pays and closes the window?
With SSLCommerz, its notification still credits the payment. With aamarPay, use Check with gateway on the pending payment request in the admin. It asks aamarPay and settles the request only if the payment went through and matches. A bKash payment is completed when the customer returns to your store, so Check with gateway can confirm it only if bKash reports it completed.
Which currency should my store use?
Bangladeshi taka (BDT). bKash charges only in taka, and every gateway credits a payment only when its currency matches the request.