With the country’s digital payments ecosystem rapidly maturing, financial services secretary M Nagaraju on Monday requested fintechs to focus on offline payment solutions to further financial inclusion and expand cross-border payment solutions.
Fintech companies should leverage their strengths and innovation by not only extending financial services to the masses, but also develop robust solutions against fraud, hacking and other cyber threats — making a greater use of emerging technologies like Artificial Intelligence, he said at the Financial Inclusion and Fintech Summit, organized by the CII.
“I would like to take this opportunity to request fintechs to focus their attention and efforts on payment solutions for offline payments, voice-based authorisation, poor connectivity coverage, as well as cross-border payments,” Nagaraju said. Low-cost but effective cyber security and anti-hacking solutions are also required, he said.
The influence of Indian fintechs has begun to extend beyond national borders, reaching the Global South. Currently, Unified Payments Interface (UPI) is accepted in seven countries – France, the UAE, Bhutan, Nepal, Mauritius, Sri Lanka and Singapore. Nagaraju said the UPI will be available in more countries.
Fintech plays a pivotal role in advancing financial inclusion by extending essential financial services to underserved and unserved regions, thereby contributing significantly to India’s growth narrative.
Nagaraju reaffirmed the government’s commitment to financial inclusion and the democratisation of credit access. He highlighted the government’s sustained efforts in fostering a supportive ecosystem for fintech innovation, underpinned by a strong digital infrastructure and transformative welfare schemes.
Nagaraju noted that a substantial portion of these financial services and loans has been accessed by women, thereby contributing to women’s empowerment and inclusive economic growth.