“I don’t think it would have been possible to build it (UPI) if it was not in Mumbai because RBI is based out of here and any such infrastructure requires a marathon effort,” Asbe said during a panel discussion with Jay Kotak, co-head of Kotak811 and MN Srinivasu, cofounder and director of Bill Desk.
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Asbe emphasised the significance of physical interaction with regulators and banks in the UPI design process.
“It requires a physical interaction with the regulators, and with the banks. The UPI design sessions were attended by many fintechs and banks. I still remember that it was like an evolution happening day by day, month by month. Most of the other expertise also, like compliance and legal services, was rightly available back in Mumbai. So, I believe that this is the right place it could all originate.”
Talking about regulations, Asbe acknowledged RBI’s guidance in creating responsible regulations around tech innovation to make the platform sustainable and scalable in the long run, creating a viable and pragmatic framework of rules and regulation around UPI.
Kotak also echoed Asbe’s sentiments regarding Mumbai’s fintech ecosystem, emphasising the city’s talent pool.
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“The number one thing is talent and that’s why I’m so excited to be here because I think it’s the young people, that are customers of our product that should be building up and no better place to do that,” Kotak said.According to data shared by NPCI, transactions through UPI reached a fresh milestone in 2023, crossing the 100-billion mark, up from 74 billion in 2022.
“When you’re building a business as an entrepreneur or as an institution, you’re looking for a holistic approach to do things and tech is an incredible way to be building businesses today. Riding on that domain, if you’re building a business or a product, then you need all the agencies and I think that’s the key differential within the fixed space that the city plays out,” Srinivasu said.
