India

Fintech Brief — August 08, 2026 Lok Sabha Passes Bill Opening Door to UPI Merchant Charges The Lok Sabha passed the Taxation and Other Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2026 on August 7, amending the Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2007 to remove the legal bar that prohibited banks and payment service providers from levying charges on notified electronic payment modes — including UPI. The amendment replaces Section 10A’s reference to Section 269SU of the Income Tax Act with a provision authorising the Central Government to notify specific electronic payment modes where charges may be permitted. Crucially, no MDR rate or implementation timeline has been announced yet — the Bill only creates the legal framework for a future decision. ...

Stock Watch — August 7, 2026 Market Day Summary | Not investment advice 📊 INDICES Index Prev Close Change % Change Direction Nifty 50 24,636.00 +11.35 +0.05% ➡️ Nifty Bank 58,063.65 +323.70 +0.56% ↗️ FinNifty 26,863.50 +19.60 +0.07% ➡️ Nifty IT 31,106.20 -297.85 -0.95% ↘️ Sensex 78,955.00 +373.76 +0.48% ↗️ Pre-market cues: Gift Nifty ~24,650 (+0.04%) — flat-to-mildly positive, pointing to a muted open. India VIX at 12.11. Bank Nifty outperformed on Thursday (+0.56%) while Nifty IT lagged (-0.95%) — profit-taking in tech, rotation into banks. FIIs were ~flat (net -₹17.86 cr) while DIIs bought ₹4,013.60 cr on Aug 6. ...

Fintech Brief — August 07, 2026 Lok Sabha Clears Bill Paving Way for UPI Charges The Lok Sabha passed a bill amending Section 10A of the Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2007, enabling the government to permit banks and payment systems to levy charges on UPI transactions. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman clarified that end-users will not face charges — the framework targets merchant-side MDR (Merchant Discount Rate) recovery. The actual MDR policy will be set by NPCI’s UPI Services Steering Committee after the Taxation and Other Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2026 becomes law. ...

Stock Watch — August 6, 2026 Market Day Summary | Not investment advice 📊 INDICES Index Prev Close Change % Change Direction Nifty 50 24,624.65 +9.75 +0.04% ➡️ Nifty Bank 57,739.95 -167.25 -0.29% ↘️ FinNifty 26,843.90 -0.80 ~0.00% ➡️ Nifty IT 31,404.05 -49.71 -0.16% ↘️ Sensex 78,581.00 +152.05 +0.19% ↗️ Pre-market cues: Gift Nifty at 17,878 pts (flat-to-positive). US markets strong — Dow record (+1.71%), S&P 500 (+1.79%), Nasdaq (+3.32%). Iran-Hormuz deal optimism easing crude. Asia mixed — KOSPI +1.62%, Nikkei +0.32%. ...

Fintech Brief — August 06, 2026 RBI Holds Repo Rate at 5.25%, Raises GDP Forecast to 6.7% The Reserve Bank of India’s Monetary Policy Committee unanimously kept the benchmark repo rate unchanged at 5.25% at its August 3–5 meeting, retaining its neutral stance. Governor Sanjay Malhotra, however, delivered an optimistic macroeconomic upgrade: the FY27 real GDP growth forecast was raised to 6.7% (from 6.6%), while the CPI inflation projection was lowered to 5.0% (from 5.1%). ...

Stock Watch — August 5, 2026 Market Day Summary | Not investment advice 📊 INDICES Index Prev Close (Aug 4) Change % Change Pre-Market Signal Nifty 50 24,614.90 -159.40 -0.64% ↗️ GIFT Nifty at 24,730 (+0.6%) Sensex 78,428.95 -210.08 -0.27% ↗️ Tracking global cues Bank Nifty ~57,600* Weak ~ -0.8% S: 57,300 FinNifty ~19,200* Weak ~ -0.5% Cautious ahead of RBI Nifty IT ~35,800* Drag ~ -1.5% Oversold, bounce possible *Approximate levels based on sectoral performance data. ...

Stock Watch — August 4, 2026 Market Day Summary | Not investment advice 📊 INDICES Index Prev Close (Aug 3) Change % Change Nifty 50 24,774.30 +390.71 +1.60% Nifty Bank 58,247.95 +985.25 +1.72% FinNifty 26,773.50 +178.10 +0.67% Nifty IT 31,715.25 +1,005.85 +3.28% India VIX 11.99 +0.23 +1.96% GIFT Nifty (Aug 4 pre-market): 24,647 (-18 pts, -0.07%) ➡️ Flat-to-mildly positive open expected. Macro context: Nifty logged 4th consecutive winning session, breaking above 24,700 for the first time in 3 months Brent crude plunged ~5% to $84/barrel on US-Iran talks optimism Rupee strengthened 12 paise to ₹95.31/USD — 6th straight day of gains RBI MPC meeting underway; status quo on rates widely expected NSE implemented new Closing Auction Session (CAS) from Aug 3 — F&O extended to 3:40 PM 🏦 BANKS — Digital Payments Focus Bank Symbol Prev Close Change % Key Levels Expectation HDFC Bank HDFCBANK 752.95 ↗️ R: 780, S: 730 FCNR(B) mobilisation ($1.4B) supports liquidity; watch RBI policy ICICI Bank ICICIBANK 1,447.80 ↗️ +1.02% R: 1,480, S: 1,410 Top FCNR(B) mobiliser at $3.69B; key contributor to Bank Nifty SBI SBIN 1,045.00 ↗️ +1.71% R: 1,070, S: 1,025 No. 1 PSB in FCNR(B) at $4.12B; breaks above 100-DMA; earnings Aug 7 Axis Bank AXISBANK 1,272.00 ↗️ +3.46% R: 1,310, S: 1,230 Strong rally; FCNR(B) $1.58B; analysts target ₹1,500-1,622 Kotak Bank KOTAKBANK 393.45 ↗️ R: 420, S: 380 FCNR(B) $1.65B; Motilal target ₹470 Banking sector note: Private banks dominated FCNR(B) mobilisation — ICICI ($3.69B), Kotak ($1.65B), Axis ($1.58B), HDFC ($1.40B). Total FCNR(B) inflows hit $28B after RBI swap facility. SBI earnings due Aug 7. ...

Fintech Brief — August 04, 2026 Government Opens the Door to UPI Merchant Charges via Payments Act Amendment The Union government has proposed amending Section 10A of the Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2007 — the clause that currently imposes a blanket ban on charging fees for UPI transactions. The amendment, clubbed under the Taxation And Other Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2026, would replace the universal prohibition with a narrower exemption: only government-notified online payment modes would be MDR-free. Everything else — including UPI for large merchants — could attract a Merchant Discount Rate. ...

Stock Watch — August 3, 2026 Market Day Summary | Not investment advice 📊 INDICES Index Prev Close (Jul 31) Change % Change Nifty 50 24,383.60 +66.45 +0.27% ↗️ Nifty Bank 57,264.85 +117.85 +0.21% ↗️ FinNifty ~24,239 ~Flat ~0.00% ➡️ Nifty IT ~30,850 -420 -1.34% ↘️ GIFT Nifty (Aug 3) 24,564.00 +116.00 +0.47% ↗️ Pre-market signal: GIFT Nifty at 24,564 (+0.47%, +116 pts) — strong positive open expected. Trump announced fresh Iran peace talks, crude dropped 6.5% overnight. US-Iran ceasefire hopes boosting global risk appetite. India VIX cooled to ~12. Nifty reclaimed 200-day EMA; RSI at 59. Three consecutive winning sessions last week (+2.59% weekly). ...

Fintech Brief — August 03, 2026 RBI Overhauls Deposit Interest Rate Framework; New Norms From October 1 The Reserve Bank of India has issued the (Commercial Banks — Interest Rate on Deposits) Second Amendment Directions, 2026, significantly revising how banks price fixed deposits. The new rules take effect October 1, 2026. Key changes: Uniform rates across all branches: Banks can no longer offer different rates for the same deposit product at different branches. All customers depositing the same amount on the same date get the same rate, regardless of branch location. Differential pricing on bulk deposits allowed: Banks can now offer varying rates on bulk deposits based on liquidity risk under the LCR (Liquidity Coverage Ratio) framework — a nod to the fact that large deposits behave differently during stress. Mandatory daily disclosure: Bulk deposit rates must be published on bank websites by 10:00 AM every business day (10:10 AM max grace period). No more opacity on what banks pay for wholesale funding. Applies to all bank categories: Commercial banks, small finance banks, regional rural banks, payment banks, local area banks, and urban cooperative banks all fall under the framework. The RBI explicitly stated these changes do not prescribe any increase or reduction in FD rates — that remains market-driven. But the transparency mandate means depositors can finally compare what their bank offers versus peers in real time. ...