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Injecting confidence in the country’s fintech ecosystem, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, speaking at the fifth edition of the Global Fintech Fest (GFF), said that the innovative financial landscape will improve the lives of people across the world.

“There used to be a time when people would come to India and were surprised by the cultural diversity in the country. Now, people come and are also surprised by our fintech diversity,” the Prime Minister said.

“Right from landing at the airport to street food and shopping experiences, India’s fintech diversity can be seen everywhere,” he added.

PM Modi also highlighted that over the last decade, the fintech space has seen investments worth over $31 billion and fintech startups have grown by more than 500%.

“Indians are rolling out fintech innovations at a very rapid pace. These innovations are made locally but have global applications,” the PM said. “India’s fintech ecosystem will improve the lives of people across the globe.”

PM Modi said that his government has brought in several policy changes to support the startup ecosystem, such as removing the angel tax, launching a Rs 1 lakh crore fund to support innovation via the Anusandhan National Research Foundation, and providing interest-free loans up to Rs 50 lakh to the MSME sector via the credit guarantee scheme.

The Prime Minister highlighted that earlier it used to be a cumbersome task for middle-class families to access banking services, but now through technological innovations, people can avail banking services using their mobiles.

He also highlighted the role of Unified Payments Interface (UPI) in accelerating digital payments banking, despite the restrictions of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Cheap phones, cheap data, and zero balance Jan Dhan accounts have done miracles in India,” he proclaimed.

Over 530 million people in India have opened Jan Dhan accounts in the last 10 years, which is equivalent to the population of the European Union, the Prime Minister highlighted. He also emphasised that Jan Dhan accounts have become a conduit for women’s empowerment. Through the Jan Dhan scheme, women have opened 290 million bank accounts.

PM Modi also gave credit to Digital Public Infrastructure to accelerate fintech adoption.

“To build trust in the technology, many innovative products have been launched, such as QR code and the use of soundboxes,” he said, adding that now, data-led banking is being advanced with innovation such as neobanking, digital-only banks, and digital twins.

During his speech, PM Modi also requested the regulators to bolster efforts to curb cyber fraud and digital literacy.

He affirmed his immense faith in India’s young talent to continue the momentum of technological growth, and added that “the best is yet to come”.