Ganesh Shah
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Designing for Nepal Wallets
CreateFeb 20, 2026·10 min read

Designing for Nepal Wallets

Cash, Bank, eSewa, Khalti, IME Pay — modeling how people actually hold money.

A finance app built only for “bank account” misunderstands Nepal. People split money across cash, cards, and digital wallets like eSewa, Khalti, and IME Pay — often in the same afternoon.

BolKharcha models each as an account type with its own balance and history. Transfers are not edge cases; they are the plot.

UI should make switching accounts obvious. Color, icons, and labels help users recognize wallets at a glance without reading paragraphs.

Onboarding must ask where money lives today. Empty “primary account” assumptions create abandoned setups.

Reconciliation across wallets is a user need. “Where did my 2,000 go?” is a multi-account question.

Design systems should include wallet language in empty states and examples. Local realism builds immediate trust.

Global templates are starting points. Local payment culture is the product.