SoftBank's early India bets are beginning to deliver. The Japanese investor, which clocked nearly 5.4x returns on Lenskart and chose to stay invested in Meesho ahead of its public listing, has so far returned close to $7 billion from India to its global investors.
Unless the primary market momentum slows, smallcap stocks will stay subdued.
Non-banking entities such as fintech firms will have to tap into use cases beyond peer-to-peer (P2P) and peer-to-merchant (P2M) transactions to scale up the presence of the retail version of the central bank digital currency (CBDC), which is also known as the e, said industry players. These use cases will enable programmable transactions across domains, including the government's direct benefit transfer (DBT) schemes, with subsidies restricted to specific purposes such as food coupons, hospital bills, fertilisers, pesticides, and cross-border remittances.
The Fintech Association for Consumer Empowerment (FACE), the only self-regulatory organisation for financial technology/fintech (SRO-FT) companies, is aiming to secure membership from at least 75 per cent of players across all key fintech categories within the next three years, according to a senior executive. The total number of members in the organisation has increased to 110, up from around 60 when it received approval from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to operate as an SRO-FT in August.
AI means 'All Inclusive' for India, asserted Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday while stressing that India Stack is a beacon of hope for the world, especially for countries in the Global South.
From Rs 73k to over Rs 1.2L between January-December 2025 -- is buying gold in 2026 still sensible?
RMG firms Dream11, Games24x7, Gameskraft and MPL lost unicorn status after the gaming ban while fintech players led 11 new unicorns added in 2025.
Shares of Billionbrains Garage Ventures, the parent of online broking platform Groww, soared nearly 30 per cent on their market debut on Wednesday, defying the recent trend of muted listings. The stock opened at Rs 112 and hit a high of Rs 134.4 before settling at Rs 128.85 on the NSE - a gain of 28.85 per cent over its issue price of Rs 100.
Before signing up for a BNPL plan, read the fine print carefully and watch for red flags like unclear repayment terms, vague information on interest or late fees, and marketing that downplays the cost of default.
While UIDAI has given a nod for face authentication, banks need to join the process.
'...not merely in managing fiscal mathematics, but in demonstrating conservatism and prudence within that framework.' 'Looking forward, we believe sufficient growth drivers exist -- ranging from government reforms to revival in consumption to favourable monsoons. Numerous factors support the Indian economy.'
The sector's IPO pipeline is led by Tata Capital's Rs 17,000 crore issue, followed by ICICI Prudential Asset Management at Rs 10,200 crore and Billionbrains Garage Ventures at Rs 6,000 crore.
Dalal Street is buzzing with excitement, as some of the most-awaited IPOs are gearing up to hit the market. While some of these big companies are planning to join the stock exchanges towards the end of 2025, others are likely to be available for trading by the first half of 2026.
'Don't look at Russia only as a place to earn quickly and then leave.' 'Try to build experience in serious companies, skills and certifications that will serve you anywhere in the world.'
He said the transformation brought about by the fintech sector in India is not just limited to technology, but its social impact is far-reaching. He also stressed that fintech has dented the parallel economy and is bridging the gap between villages and cities on the financial services front. The prime minister also said that in the last 10 years, the fintech space has attracted investments of more than $31 billion and fintech startups have grown by 500 per cent.
Across all sectors, the future of work depends on adaptability.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has recognised the Fintech Association for Consumer Empowerment (FACE) as a self-regulatory organisation (SRO) in the fintech sector, the central bank announced on Wednesday. The banking regulator received three applications for fintech SRO. Of the remaining two applications, one has been returned by the RBI with a provision for resubmission after meeting specific requirements, while the third application is still under examination, said Governor Shaktikanta Das at the Global Fintech Fest in Mumbai.
Digital payments provider PhonePe has filed draft papers with markets regulator Sebi for its upcoming initial public offering (IPO) using the confidential pre-filing route. On Wednesday, the company's spokesperson said, "PhonePe Ltd has filed the Pre-filed Draft Red Herring Prospectus with Sebi and the stock exchanges, under...the Sebi ICDR Regulations in relation to the proposed initial public offering of its equity shares on the main board of the stock exchanges".
Risk assessment platforms are increasingly using diverse data sources to help lenders identify groups attempting to access credit from regulated entities and to improve the process of evaluating new-to-credit (NTC) users.
Harmanpreet Kaur, Smrit Mandhana, Deepti Sharma, Shafali Verma, and Jemimah Rodrigues are poised to see an uplift of 25 to 35 per cent in brand value.
'The danger is that when the music stops, the fall will be sudden, faster, and deeper than anyone expects,' warns Debashis Basu.
'Money moves in a web of transactions and payment addresses keep changing for offshore companies, which requires heightened monitoring measures.'
Venture funding in India slowed in the third quarter (Q3) of 2025 amid geopolitical uncertainty, though exit activity surged to a seven-year high, according to Venture Pulse from KPMG Private Enterprise, a quarterly report tracking investment trends globally across major regions around the world.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi conveyed India's concerns to his British counterpart Keir Starmer over the activities of pro-Khalistani extremists in the UK, emphasizing the need for action against radicalism and violent extremism.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate phase one of the Navi Mumbai International Airport and the final phase of Mumbai Metro Line-3 during his two-day Maharashtra visit. He will also launch Mumbai One, India's first integrated common mobility app.
'So, we would work with our members to ensure that we as an SRO create some sort of due diligence for fintechs.'
'Reinvention is not a hugely difficult task. With technology as available today, you can reinvent yourself pretty quickly.'
'This marks a turning point for Paytm, with the regulatory environment looking much clearer than it has been in the last two years.'
India and the UK have announced a series of defence cooperation initiatives, including a USD 468 million deal for the supply of lightweight multirole missile systems to enhance India's air defence capabilities.
The unique investors' base on the National Stock Exchange of India (NSE) crossed the 12-crore mark on September 23, with the latest 1 crore addition taking place in just eight months, the bourse said on Thursday.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) does not target any price level on the rupee, Governor Sanjay Malhotra reiterated at an International Monetary Fund and World Bank event on Wednesday.
'Our focus would be to onboard top 100 merchants in top 10 different segments.'
Why are financial-technology (fintech) players moving back to India, or doing the reverse-flipping?
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is in no rush to launch the central bank digital currency (CBDC) nationwide, as its most promising use case - cross-border payments - depends on other countries rolling out their own CBDCs simultaneously for the system to work effectively. That said, the CBDC pilot is progressing well, with the user base in India expanding to about seven million, said RBI Deputy Governor T Rabi Sankar.
Entities controlled by governments - sovereign wealth funds, and pension funds - have recorded higher growth in equity assets under custody compared to other foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) over the past five years.
'For smaller merchants, there should be a process that is digital and a minimum KYC journey should be allowed.'
With the price of gold entering a strong bull run, gold-loan non-banking financial companies (NBFCs) are under the spotlight, even though their performance is not directly linked to gold price. Muthoot Finance outperformed in the April-June quarter (Q1) of 2025-26 (FY26), with its assets under management (AUM) growing 10 per cent quarter-on-quarter (Q-o-Q) and 42 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y), an improvement of 88 basis points (bps) Q-o-Q in net interest margin (NIM), and a fall in credit cost. Gold AUM rose 40 per cent Y-o-Y and 10 per cent Q-o-Q. The company recorded recoveries of 350 crore, including 100 crore from an asset reconstruction company (ARC), resulting in a 100-bp Q-o-Q yield increase.
'What we need to watch is how Saudi Arabia's financial assistance will be used by Pakistan. If the funds go to build their military hardware and operations, it should worry us.'
Nearly 7 out of every 10 P2M UPI transactions take place in high frequency categories like groceries, restaurants, pharmacies, fuel service stations, bakeries and utility services such as electricity, gas, water and sanitation.
'Returning Indians can leverage their international skills and the strong funding environment for start-ups here.'
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