RBI Governor Shares 5 Thoughts for Fintechs

Mumbai: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Sanjay Malhotra on Wednesday said that India’s fintech revolution has entered a new phase where responsible use of data will be the key to deepening inclusion and driving sustainable growth. Speaking at the 6th Global Fintech Fest (GFF) 2025 here, he urged the fintech industry to prioritise inclusion, customer-centric innovation, and robust security while positioning India as a global leader in digital finance. He also warned on the issue of growing digital frauds and made a strong case for making efforts to curb the menace.

The governor outlined five guiding principles for the sector, emphasising that “Think global by working local. Let India lead how the future of digital finance shapes globally.”

Malhotra’s keynote, delivered under the summit’s theme “Empowering Finance for a Better World – Powered by AI,” highlighted the RBI’s proactive stance on emerging technologies. He revealed that the central bank is actively working on leveraging financial data, asset tokenization, and artificial intelligence, areas he described as holding the future, while tackling the rising menace of digital frauds. “We need to build a data public infrastructure that will integrate the huge pool of data that we have,” Malhotra stated, pointing to the Account Aggregator framework as a key initiative. This framework empowers users to share financial data safely with regulators and financial institutions without compromising privacy.

Malhotra urged fintechs to improve access for less-developed regions of India, designing products that are intuitive and easy to use for populations with lower digital literacy. He asked fintechs to adopt a customer-first approach and encouraged companies to create frictionless experiences. He also suggested that fintechs extend the success of digital payments to small businesses and other underserved segments, exploring new products and services that enhance financial accessibility.