The number of users of the Dhaka Stock Exchange's (DSE) mobile app has more than halved in the past four financial years, apparently due to a protracted bearish trend in the market.

The number of registered users of the DSE-Mobile and its desktop version, named DSE-Investor, stood at 32,900 in the just-concluded fiscal year of 2023-24, which is a 29 percent decrease compared to FY23.

In FY23, the app had 46,622 users, but even that represented a steep 40 percent decline compared to FY22, when the number of users peaked at 77,949.

Saiful Islam, president of the DSE Brokers Association of Bangladesh, said the younger generation, especially students, use the app alongside middle-aged professionals.

He added that the unstable condition of the stock market at present is prompting them to leave the market, he said.

The market saw a bear run for a long time, but when they entered the market, it started to fall, so they became disheartened, he said.

The DSE imposed a yearly service charge of Tk 1,500 on users of the app in 2023, but Islam differed with any allegation that investors were leaving the market due to the imposition of this charge.

"Some people may say that the number of mobile app users dropped due to the imposition of the service charge, but I don't support it," Islam said.

"If people can make a profit, the service charge is not a big deal."

A top official of a merchant bank, preferring anonymity, said most people make trades by calling brokers or representatives while a few prefer to trade from the comfort of brokerage houses.

Not only is this the preferred system, it also has no additional cost, Islam added.

He also backed the notion that mostly the younger generation and professionals prefer to invest through apps, adding that the gloomy scenario is leaving general investors with no choice but to leave the market.

So, not only the number of mobile app users, but also the number of beneficiary owner's (BO's) accounts are also dropping, which indicates that people are exiting the market, he added.

Although the volume of transactions through the app picked up in FY21, when it accounted for 16.65 percent of the market's total transactions, it has failed to gain significant ground since.

The app only accounted for 6.89 percent of total transactions in FY22, before the number rebounded to 11.49 percent in FY2023.

In the recently-concluded financial year, it rose again to 14.12 percent.

Meanwhile, total turnover saw a similar trend as it fell 3.62 percent year-on-year to Tk 21,155 crore in FY24.

In FY23, the turnover stood at Tk 21,949 crore, marking a steep 48.23 percent decline from FY22.

In FY22, the turnover stood at Tk 42,401 crore, a sharp 47.20 percent increase against FY21, when turnover was Tk 28,804 crore.

A top official of the DSE said stock trading through its mobile app had dropped as overall turnover had fallen. If turnover rises, the number of mobile users will also increase, he added.

The daily average turnover of the DSE dropped 22 percent year-on-year to Tk 621 crore in fiscal year 2023-24, data showed. It was Tk 792 crore in fiscal year 2022-23.