Banks in Bhutan

The Royal Monetary Authority (RMA) has served as Bhutan’s central bank since 1982. Under the RMA Act 2010 and the Financial Services Act 2011, it licenses banks, conducts prudential supervision, regulates payments and foreign exchange, and operates or settles systems including BFS, BIPS, CTS, BIRT and SWIFT through its payment-systems functions. The current commercial-bank directory includes Bank of Bhutan Limited, Bhutan National Bank Limited, Druk PNB Bank Limited, Bhutan Development Bank Limited, T Bank Limited and Digital Kidu Limited. Bhutan Development Bank is a specialised deposit-taking commercial bank, while Digital Kidu Bank is a digital-focused provider. Commercial-bank deposits reached Nu 238,749.9 million in financial year 2024/25, including Nu 154,137.2 million held by individuals and Nu 129,144.1 million in demand deposits. Common products include savings accounts, current deposits, term or fixed deposits, recurring deposits, minor or piggy accounts, pension accounts and foreign-currency accounts. Savings accounts are usually interest-bearing. Current deposits are typically designed for government bodies, companies, business entities, NGOs and associations, commonly provide cheque facilities and generally do not pay interest. Conditions, interest rates, minimum balances and charges vary by bank and product. For example, a Bhutan National Bank current account requires a minimum balance of Nu 1,000, while an example savings-account requirement applies to Bhutanese citizens older than 15 and includes an account form, passport photograph, legal stamp and valid CID. Banks apply their own customer-verification procedures within Bhutan’s regulatory framework. Depending on the customer and product, accepted identification can include a CID, passport, work permit, special-resident permit, marriage certificate, student card, trade card or diplomatic card. Some banks offer digital onboarding: BoBaccount can use the Bhutan NDI Wallet QR, and Bhutan National Bank supports online onboarding with NDI credentials, a photograph, current address, telephone number, email address, electronic signature and CID. RemitBhutan supports Bhutanese living abroad in relevant remittance and account processes. No uniform RMA processing deadline is established in the available research, so onboarding time depends on the bank and the completeness of the KYC documents. Bhutanese citizens living in Bhutan have been eligible for foreign-currency accounts at commercial banks since 2 March 2024. Bhutanese citizens living abroad can continue to use relevant RemitBhutan pathways. Currency availability, exchange rates and permitted transactions follow RMA foreign-exchange rules. The research does not establish a blanket right for foreign nationals to open every type of foreign-currency account. Payments use cash, cheques, bank transfers, cards and digital channels. The Cheque Truncation System clears cheque images, with interbank settlement typically occurring on T+1. BIPS and BIRT support interbank transfers, and BIPS operates around the clock through mobile and internet banking. Bhutan QR works across participating banks, while domestic payment gateways support online payments. E-wallets such as B-Ngul, eTeeru, goBoB, MyPay and T-Wallet provide a functional alternative for people without bank access, but an e-wallet is not the same as a bank deposit account. Card services differ by provider. Bank of Bhutan offers domestic debit and credit cards, proprietary debit cards, fuel cards and corporate credit cards. Bhutan National Bank and T Bank issue RuPay and Visa debit or credit cards, Bhutan Development Bank offers domestic debit cards, and Druk PNB Bank offers Mastercard and proprietary cards. BFS supports ATM and point-of-sale interoperability. RuPay cards issued by Bhutan National Bank and T Bank can support relevant use in India, and UPI Global QR supports payments by Indian visitors. Bank of Bhutan and Bhutan National Bank provide international payment gateways in USD and INR. RMA-listed card acceptance includes Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Maestro, JCB, Discover and UnionPay. SWIFT membership is listed for Bank of Bhutan, Bhutan National Bank, Bhutan Development Bank, Digital Kidu Bank, Druk PNB Bank and T Bank. Some charges are set or published for specific services, while many others depend on the bank and product. Domestic mobile-fund transfers and Bhutan QR payments are free in the researched fee schedule. The first five ATM financial transactions are free, the sixth and later financial transactions cost Nu 9, and ATM non-financial transactions cost Nu 5. Returning a cheque for insufficient funds costs Nu 1,000. BIRT fees are Nu 20 for BITS transfers up to Nu 1 million and Nu 50 for RTGS transfers above Nu 1 million. SWIFT charges include a 0.20 percent commission with a minimum of Nu 500 plus a Nu 500 telegraphic-transfer charge. GST, transaction limits and bank-specific charges must be checked before using a service. Under the Consumer Protection in Financial Services Rules 2019, licensed financial-service providers should disclose terms, risks, fees and charges before a contract. Their websites or engagement centres should provide licensing information, rates, foreign-exchange information, charges and helpdesk contacts. Customer confidentiality is protected under the Financial Services Act, subject to legal, court and anti-money-laundering exceptions. A complaint should first go to the bank’s Consumer Protection Cell. An unresolved bank or BIRT complaint can then be referred to the RMA Consumer Protection Cell. Bhutan’s reviewed RMA material does not establish an active deposit-insurance or public-guarantee scheme. Although the Financial Services Act allows a Deposit Protection Agency and provides for membership of deposit-taking institutions, the current RMA liquidity document states that effective deposit insurance or a public guarantee is absent. Depositors should therefore not assume that balances have statutory insurance coverage. Banks and customers also face fraud risks involving phishing, vishing, impersonation, QR scams, OTP fraud, SIM duplication and card skimming. OTPs, M-PINs, T-PINs, CID details and account information should not be shared by telephone or social media. Account sharing and third-party use are prohibited or actively sanctioned; RMA enforcement reported 20 violators, 16 convictions and confiscated funds of Nu 3.63 million in 2025. A 2026 account-sharing regulation was still in draft consultation in the researched material, so its status requires checking before relying on it. Following a 2026 Bank of Bhutan incident, the RMA ordered control improvements, account reviews, restoration for unaffected customers and compensation for direct and, where applicable, consequential losses. Branch availability, service levels and charges can differ locally, and conditions reviewed for Thimphu should not automatically be treated as nationwide rules.