May 31, 2022Twitter new crisis misinformation policy targets international armed conflictTwitter is implementing a new policy which looks to curb the spread of #misinformation on the platform during a crisis. So far it only applies to armed international conflicts as the war in #Ukraine rages. But it could expand these rules to other humanitarian crises. In light of the ongoing…Twitter2 min readTwitter2 min read
May 23, 2022Aadhaar round-up: KYC norms become more liberal and clearerThis post provides an overview of major Aadhaar KYC related developments in the last year. It covers expansion of Aadhaar e-KYC access to non-banks and the framework for offline Aadhaar verification. Know-thy-customer is the first commandment of the financial services industry. And Aadhaar-based KYC is one of the most convenient…Aadhaar4 min readAadhaar4 min read
May 23, 2022Credit through UPI: Need for regulatory clarityThis post explains the legal grey areas in offering credit through UPI. It provides a snapshot of regulatory action by NPCI and highlights implementation issues which must be resolved to enable this use-case. Moving money through UPI is like taking an Uber between two deposit accounts. UPI picks money (already…Credit2 min readCredit2 min read
May 23, 2022RBI WG Report sets the stage for regulation of digital lendingThis post analyses the impact of the RBI Working Group’s Report on Digital Lending Apps. It covers key recommendations made by the Working Group relating to credit-risk sharing, data privacy and security, artificial intelligence and buy-now-pay-later products. Regulation of digital lending in India now seems imminent. The RBI has been…Fintech7 min readFintech7 min read
May 23, 2022Rise of acquisitions in Indian fintechThis post explores the recent flurry of acquisitions in the Indian fintech industry. It cites examples of major fintech acquisitions and explains the legal and economic rationale behind them. Investments in the financial services space are picking up pace. Cred, a company known for enabling credit card payments (and quirky…Fintech2 min readFintech2 min read
May 23, 2022Niti Aayog’s discussion paper on digital banksThis post explores Niti Aayog’s proposal to create a licensing framework for fully digital banks. It examines the impact of this proposal on neo-banks and explains the roadmap for implementation. If I had a rupee for every time I heard the word ‘neobank’, I’d deposit all those rupees in a…Fintech3 min readFintech3 min read
May 21, 2022Offline digital payments: Analysis of RBI’s regulatory frameworkThis post analyses RBI’s framework for offline digital payments. It also traces the history of offline digital payments in India and highlights their benefits for users. ‘Offline digital payment’ sounds like an oxymoron. But with RBI’s framework for facilitating small value offline digital payments, it may become a mainstream payment…Offline Payments2 min readOffline Payments2 min read
May 21, 2022RBI’s increasing penalties on regulated entitiesThis post analyses the trend of RBI imposing stricter penalties on #banks, NBFCs and #payment system operators for non-compliance with regulatory requirements. It lists major penalties levied by the RBI in the recent past and examines the impact of these penalties on financial service providers “RBI is neither a hawk…Reserve Bank Of India3 min readReserve Bank Of India3 min read
May 19, 2022Regulating Big Tech in financial services in IndiaThis post discusses RBI’s concerns about Big Tech’s presence in financial services and its proposed regulatory approach. “In God we trust. In Big Tech we antitrust?” was one of our favorite stories from last year. It was about Big Tech’s tussle with US and Indian anti-trust laws. And concerns of…Big Tech2 min readBig Tech2 min read
May 19, 2022Access to credit bureau information for fintechsThis post analyses the implications of RBI allowing unregulated entities to access credit bureau data. It explains the history of data sharing between regulated entities and fintech players. And highlights the benefits and risks of providing fintech players access to credit bureau data. Digital lending is a data play. The…Fintech2 min readFintech2 min read
