Prime Minister Narendra Modi has called on India’s fintech sector to move beyond the success of UPI and focus on the next generation of financial innovation.
Addressing the Global Fintech Fest 2026 in Mumbai, Modi said India’s fintech journey has been remarkable, with UPI playing a major role in expanding digital payments and bringing millions of people into the formal financial system. UPI completed 10 years on August 25 and recorded more than 2,400 crore transactions in August alone, according to Modi.
Modi said the next phase of fintech should extend beyond payments to areas such as credit, savings, pensions and insurance. He also highlighted emerging technologies including agentic AI, tokenisation and quantum technology as creating new opportunities for the financial sector.
The Prime Minister also called for India to take its fintech systems and standards to the global stage. He suggested expanding UPI linkages with countries where India has significant trade and diaspora connections, potentially helping reduce the cost of cross-border remittances.
For the sector’s next phase, Modi identified four priorities: stronger cybersecurity, ethical data-protection standards, a closer fintech-regulator-industry innovation ecosystem and a consumer protection index that provides transparent ratings for fintech companies.
With India already having built a large-scale digital payments ecosystem, the focus is now shifting towards using emerging technologies to deliver broader, safer and more inclusive financial services.
