Internet prices in Bangladesh could decrease by 40 to 50 percent once private submarine cable operations are fully integrated into the national network, according to Aminul Hoque, President of the Internet Service Providers Association of Bangladesh (ISPAB).
He shared the assessment on Tuesday (September 22, 2026) during a roundtable discussion titled “Affordable Internet for All: Obstacles and Solutions to Tech Giant Investments in Bangladesh,” organized by the Telecom and Technology Reporters’ Network Bangladesh (TRNB) in Dhaka.
The ISPAB president noted that Internet Service Providers (ISPs) currently purchase wholesale bandwidth at Tk 120 to Tk 130 per Mbps. Once private submarine cable operators commence commercial operations, the entry of multiple bandwidth sources will foster market competition, allowing ISPs to procure wholesale capacity at nearly half the current cost—a benefit that can be directly passed on to end consumers.
He highlighted that national bandwidth demand currently stands at approximately 13,500 Gbps, with projections estimating it will reach 50,000 to 54,000 Gbps by 2030. To meet this surging digital demand, he urged regulatory easing of state-run Bangladesh Submarine Cables PLC’s (BSCPLC) market dominance and called for streamlined private cable infrastructure integration.
A keynote paper presented at the seminar revealed that between 2008 and 2026, BSCPLC generated over Tk 3,000 crore in revenue and recorded a net profit exceeding Tk 1,362 crore. However, due to monopolistic market structures, general consumers have been unable to fully leverage these investments for lower internet tariffs. Addressing international cable constraints and policy bottlenecks is also deemed essential to attract hyper-scalers and global tech giants like Google, Meta, Akamai, and Cloudflare.
In response, BSCPLC previously stated in a official release that concerns over bandwidth shortages are unfounded, maintaining that their existing infrastructure capacity remains well ahead of current and projected national demand.
