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Sitharaman Urges Fintechs to Strengthen Security and Expand Lending

Fintech and Financial Services

Business Honor- Sitharaman Urges Fintechs to Strengthen Security & Expand Lending

Business Honor
19 June, 2025

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman urged fintechs to combat cyber frauds, boost MSME lending, and expand globally.

During the Digital Payments Awards 2025, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman highlighted the importance of fintech startups in protecting India's rapidly expanding digital financial landscape. She appealed to the fintech industry to create advanced solutions to counter new risks like digital arrests, fly-by-night operator cheating, and the abuse of deepfake technology —all of which are driving a fresh influx of cyber frauds against the public.

Gracing fintechs for speeding up financial inclusion and making digital payment systems accessible to distant areas of the country, Sitharaman urged the industry to keep innovating to keep one step ahead of fraudsters. She observed that such threats had to be tackled proactively to maintain public confidence in digital financial services.

The minister also emphasized the importance of wider digital lending to benefit MSMEs (Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises), terming it a crucial driver of economic growth. She asked fintech players to not just deepen their presence in the Indian market but also take successful financial service models to international markets.

Sitharaman celebrated the going global of India's Unified Payments Interface (UPI), already operational in seven countries, and said India's digital public infrastructure (DPI) could become a template for emerging economies and even advanced economies.

India's fintech sector, poised to grow to more than $400 billion by 2028-29, holds gigantic growth opportunities. Sitharaman urged startups to "innovate fearlessly," open up financial systems, and "inspire the world" with Indian solutions.

With UPI recording 18,587 crore transactions of value ₹261 lakh crore during FY 2024–25, the finance ministry once again reiterated its intent to help foster fintech innovation, establish trust by going phygital, and make India a world fintech center.