Daily Brief

Fintech Brief — June 09, 2026 1. RBI Unveils Dollar Inflow Package; Banking Sector Expects $35–40 Billion in Foreign Currency Deposits The Reserve Bank of India announced a series of measures on Friday to boost dollar inflows, triggering the rupee’s biggest single-day rally in two months — a 0.88% gain to 94.9450 against the US dollar. Punjab National Bank’s senior management told Reuters that the banking sector expects to raise $35 billion to $40 billion via foreign currency deposits under the new RBI scheme. ...

Fintech Brief — June 08, 2026 Today’s Top Stories 1. RBI Signs Cross-Border Digital Payments MoU with Vietnam; UPI International Network Expands The Reserve Bank of India and the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to enhance cooperation in digital payments, fintech development, and payment system connectivity. Approved by the Union Cabinet, the MoU focuses on enabling cross-border QR code-based merchant payments between India and Vietnam, making transactions more seamless and cost-effective for businesses, tourists, and consumers. The agreement builds on India’s broader strategy of exporting its digital public infrastructure — UPI now has live linkages with Nepal, UAE, Singapore, Bhutan, France, Sri Lanka, Mauritius, Peru, and Cambodia (launched June 2). Economic Times PIB ...

Fintech Brief — June 07, 2026 Today’s Top Stories 1. UPI Clocks Record 23.2 Billion Transactions in May; Goes Live in Cambodia as 9th Country NPCI data released this week confirms UPI processed a record 23.2 billion transactions worth ₹29.9 lakh crore in May 2026, up ~4% in volume and ~3% in value from April’s 22.35 billion transactions (₹29.03 lakh crore). At an average of 737.8 million daily transactions worth ₹84,423 crore, UPI now accounts for ~85% of all digital transactions in India and nearly half of the world’s real-time payments. Summer travel, IPL 2026 spending, and seasonal consumption drove the uptick. The Hindu Business Line ANI News ...

Fintech Brief — June 06, 2026 1. RBI Holds Repo at 5.25%, Slashes Growth Forecast to 6.6% — Hawks Hover The RBI Monetary Policy Committee unanimously kept the policy repo rate unchanged at 5.25% for the third consecutive meeting, retaining its “neutral” stance. However, the central bank sharply revised its FY27 GDP growth forecast downward from 6.9% to 6.6%, while raising the retail inflation projection from 4.6% to 5.1% — both driven by elevated crude oil prices, West Asia conflict-driven supply chain disruptions, and the risk of a weak monsoon. ...

Fintech Brief — June 05, 2026 1. UPI Goes Live in Cambodia — India’s Cross-Border Payments Network Expands to 9th Country NPCI International Payments Limited (NIPL) launched cross-border UPI payments in Cambodia on June 3, enabling Indian travellers to pay at over 4.5 million KHQR merchant outlets using any UPI-enabled app. The linkage was established in partnership with ACLEDA Bank Plc, under the supervision of both the Reserve Bank of India and the National Bank of Cambodia. ...

Fintech Brief — June 04, 2026 RBI MPC Deliberations Begin; Rate Hike Looms Over Currency Pressure The RBI’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) began its three-day deliberations on June 3, with the policy decision due Friday, June 6. While a majority of economists polled by CNBC expect the repo rate to hold at 5.25% — marking a third consecutive pause — there is growing chatter that the central bank may defy consensus and hike rates to defend the rupee. India is facing a dual risk: a weakening currency and elevated inflation, compounded by foreign institutional investor outflows that crossed $26.4 billion year-to-date in 2026. Bernstein’s Venugopal Garre argued on CNBC that a rate hike would be “more logical” for India, drawing parallels with Indonesia’s surprise 50 bps hike on May 20. Separately, Reuters reported that the RBI has sent at least 10 queries to firms and family offices over the past three weeks to scrutinise overseas investments routed through opaque structures — a rare enforcement sweep targeting potential misuse of the Overseas Direct Investment route for private wealth management. 1 2 ...

Fintech Brief — June 03, 2026 India-Cambodia Launch Cross-Border QR Payments via UPI India’s UPI has added another international corridor. On June 2, NPCI International Payments Limited (NIPL) and Cambodia’s ACLEDA Bank officially launched Phase 1 of the India-Cambodia cross-border QR code payment linkage at a ceremony in Phnom Penh, presided over by Cambodia’s central bank governor and an RBI representative. In this first phase, Indian travellers can scan Cambodia’s KHQR codes to make payments directly from their UPI-enabled apps. This builds on NIPL’s expanding international footprint — UPI linkages are already live with Sri Lanka, Nepal, UAE, Singapore, Mauritius, and others under India’s DPI diplomacy push. ...

Fintech Brief — June 02, 2026 Revolut Begins Controlled Beta Rollout in India, Targets 20M Users by 2030 British fintech giant Revolut has quietly started onboarding waitlisted users in India as part of a controlled beta programme, marking a significant milestone in its years-long effort to crack the Indian market. A few thousand users have already gained access to the localised app, which is available on both Google Play Store and Apple’s App Store. ...

Fintech Brief — May 20, 2026 Vodafone Idea Posts Surprise Profit Amid 5G Expansion Vodafone Idea reported a profit after tax of INR345 billion for FY2026, defying expectations of another annual loss. The telco accelerated 4G and 5G deployments, expanding 5G coverage to more than 80 cities across all 17 telecom circles and increasing 4G population coverage to 86%. The turnaround follows accelerated network investments and fresh capital support from the Aditya Birla Group, positioning Vodafone Idea as a key infrastructure player in India’s digital payments ecosystem. ...

Fintech Brief — May 19, 2026 RBI Discontinues Investment Fluctuation Reserve Requirement The Reserve Bank of India has discontinued the mandatory Investment Fluctuation Reserve (IFR) for commercial banks, effective May 18, 2026. The circular, titled “Reserve Bank of India (Commercial Banks - Classification, Valuation, and Operation of Investment Portfolio) Second Amendment Directions, 2026,” notes that prudential frameworks governing market risk and investments have evolved, making the IFR requirement redundant1. Banks must transfer existing IFR balances to Statutory Reserve, General Reserve, or the Balance of Profit and Loss Account by May 17, 2026. For foreign banks operating in India, balances will be transferred to statutory reserves or non-repatriable surplus. Separate circulars have been issued for cooperative banks, small finance banks, and payments banks, with clarified guidelines for SFBs and PBs1. ...