Fast Forward Growth

India is seen to be creating many global firsts and the fintech sector is one such example. The underlying factor for these is the foundational public infrastructure that the country has invested in. The digital public good that we created as a country has given a strong stimulant to the broader adoption by the industry. India set an example by forming a digital public infrastructure that has become the groundwork on top of which innovations prosper. 

This holds true for many of the digitally-enabled sectors, where India is now showing leadership positions and leading the global narrative.

The Road Less Travelled
The government’s role in achieving this scale is crucial. If you see historically, when any new territory was discovered, few private enterprises tried to maximise their interest by taking a significant share of the business. While they had innovative approaches, they were all focused on their shareholders’ interests. The strong growth stimulus would come from the large cross-section of highways, roads and rails, on top of which businesses could grow. These are national initiatives. 

In financial transactions and digital commerce as well, a few large enterprises were focusing on their business interests. But the digital foundation, which was created as a common good, benefitted everyone and helped business enterprises innovate and develop new solutions. These were relevant to all and made profitable ventures. This kind of approach can come only from the government as it has the larger interest of the economy in mind than of any select sections. 

I will also cite the example of ONDC here, which is attracting a significant amount of participation from startups, established fintech players and bankers that are in turn enabling companies to take a position based on their strengths and target consumers. 

A Valley of Good
India has been building many public goods that are interoperable. This is what is working for the country now. One case in point is Aadhaar, which created an id mechanism for any service such as telecom or banking. This helped significantly speed up adoption in several sectors beating expectations. Building on it, we used UPIs which helped broaden financial transactions. These are built on top of the previous developments. Now that digital transaction is ubiquitous, we can easily impact commerce. One correct step has made way for another.

All of these speak with each other seamlessly, and the same philosophy applies to health, education, skills and more. The ability for each of them to build on others gives a significant amount of boost, creating endless possibilities. This coupled with India’s intellectual capital helps us fast forward our growth in an unprecedented manner. This is the unstoppable India in the digital era.

(As told to BW Businessworld’s Noor Fathima Warsia)