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<ul><li><keyword id="44604" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Nandan-Nilekani">Nandan Nilekani</keyword>, Infosys co-founder and the architect of the world’s largest biometric system, was just appointed by India’s central bank to improve the adoption of digital payments in the country. </li><li>Despite numerous attempts by the Indian government, cashless payments dipped once cash was available after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s demonetisation exercise. </li><li>There are numerous challenges ahead for Nilekani including addressing the level of digital literacy in the country and keeping digital payments affordable.</li></ul>India now has 800 million mobile phone users but merely a fraction are using digital payments. The <keyword id="6354335" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="reserve-bank-of-india">Reserve Bank of India</keyword> has brought none other than Nandan Nilekani, the architect of the world’s largest biometric identity system, the <keyword id="144117" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="AADHAAR">Aadhaar</keyword>, after several attempts to push Indians to go cashless fell short of the government’s goal. While the infamous demonetisation in November 2016, which aimed at pushing Indians to use digital payments, gave a temporary fillip to mobile wallets — the momentum wasn’t maintained once banks had enough cash to dispense. According to the government think tank, Niti Aayog, the digital payment market is set to reach $1 trillion by 2023.However, Nilekani, an entrepreneur-turned-techocrat, has his task cut out for him and it’s not an easy one. 
 <div type="ExtQuote" text="The five-member panel on deepening of digital payments has been constituted with a view to encourage digitisation of payments and enhance financial inclusion through digitisation." auname="Reserve Bank of India, press statement"></div>



 More internet penetration, but is it enough More people in India have access to internet in India than ever before but the infrastructure and connectivity is far from ideal, more so outside the big cities — even with credit or debit card transactions. Even when demonetisation took place, PayTM — one of India’s most-used <keyword id="6358031" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="digital-wallets">digital wallets</keyword> — <a href="https://www.exchange4media.com/marketing-news/paytm-faces-multiple-challenges-ata-crucial-juncture-of-its-journey-67263.html">crashed</a> under the sudden increase in traffic. Force of habit It’s not about knowing that you can make payments using the internet, it’s also about habit. In rural areas, due to the lack of infrastructure and appropriate incentives — going to the bank or to the market is still easier and cheaper than shopping online. Limited digital literacy The biggest hurdle in the committee’s way isn’t access to internet but digital literacy. Educating the masses so that they are able to use these apps will be a prerequisite. Even among those who are familiar with digital modes, a large section of Indians are still paranoid about the safety of online transactions. The question of security A report by Qualcomm states that a lot of wallets and banking apps in India lack the requisite hardware security. And since they run on Android accommodating versions that lack the latest security updates, they are relatively more vulnerable to being hacked. The question isn’t only of alphanumeric passwords but also biometrics, like your fingerprint. Even one of <keyword id="30067" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="RBI">RBI</keyword>’s mandate is speaks to that regard. 
 <div type="ExtQuote" text="Suggest measures to strengthen the safety and security of digital payments and a roadmap for increasing customer confidence and trust while accessing financial services through digital modes." auname="Reserve Bank of India, press statement"></div>



 Security and trust are two different things Even with best security in place, the people will only use digital payments if there’s trust. The recent data leaks and reports of insider fraud at PayTM have not helped that cause. Most people prefer cash in the country because it doesn’t leave a digital footprint under the perception that having every transaction scrutinized could lead to more trouble. Nilekani, one of the founders of Indian tech services major Infosys, is often eulogized for creating the Aadhaar framework, but notwithstanding the magnitude of the exercise, the unique identity project has had its share of chinks. The Tribune, when looking into the security of the Aadhar database, found that they could attain all the details about a person using the 12-digit unique identification number after <a href="http://www.tribuneindia.com/news/nation/rs-500-10-minutes-and-you-have-access-to-billion-aadhaar-details/523361.html">paying an agent</a> ₹500. For another ₹300, you get a physical copy of the Aadhaar card, which could then be used to access various government schemes. Robert Baptiste, a french researcher known by online Twitter handle ‘Elliot Alderson’, was <a href="https://twitter.com/fs0c131y/status/973482430903586816?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E973482430903586816&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.businessinsider.in%2Findian-government-portal-leaks-8-9mn-aadhaar-details-again%2Farticleshow%2F63924186.cms">able to</a> hack into the Aadhaar app in under a minute. Another twitter user, Srinivas Kodali, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/indian-government-portal-leaks-8-9mn-aadhaar-details-again/articleshow/63924186.cms">exposed</a> how 8.9 million Aadhaar numbers were vulnerable. Aadhaar was still a mode for people to receive government benefits and cash transfer. It will take a lot more time and effort to convince penny-wise Indians to risk their money in digital payment apps.

Can Nilekani, the architect of the world’s largest biometric project, spark digital payments in India?

<ul><li><keyword id="44604" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Nandan-Nilekani">Nandan Nilekani</keyword> believes crypto has stored value, just like gold or silver, but lacks transactional value.</li><li>Unlike Musk, though, Nilekani has a balanced approach to <keyword id="6357017" type="DEFINITION" weightage="20" keywordseo="cryptocurrency">cryptocurrency</keyword> that includes the co-existence of UPI.</li><li>The Indian government was highly reluctant about cryptocurrency in the beginning and banned it in 2018. The Supreme Court overturned that ruling.</li><li>Even crypto exchanges have asked the government to consider cryptocurrencies as an asset.</li></ul>Often considered one of India's most respected voices, <keyword id="207812" type="POSITION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Infosys-co-founder">Infosys co-founder</keyword> Nandan Nilekani feels the country can consider <a href="https://wazirx.com/signup?invite=2kpah6gr&amp;utm_source=business-insider&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_campaign=microsite">cryptocurrencies</a> an asset amid rising popularity and lack of regulatory oversight. He believes crypto has stored value, just like gold or silver, but lacks transactional value. "Just like you have some of your assets in gold or real estate, you can have some of your assets in crypto," he spoke to <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/874586aa-9fb8-4a72-ba09-083b6afbaf77">Financial Times</a> in an interview. "I think there's a role for crypto as a stored value but certainly not in a transactional sense." Nilekani is often credited for kickstarting the IT boom in India and creating an industry unlike any other. He's also the architect of the Aadhaar biometric identity project that's handled by UIDAI (Unique Identification Authority of India). While the government mulls over regulations, backing from an expert adds a lot of confidence for new investors. A phenomenon that Tesla co-founder Elon Musk currently masters. Unlike Musk, though, Nilekani has a balanced approach to cryptocurrency that includes the co-existence of UPI (Unified Payments Interface). He thinks that the homegrown payments solution is much more effective as it's not volatile and requires minimal energy. UPI is a protocol developed by NPCI (National Payments Corporation of India) that allows peer-to-peer <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/npci-starts-a-campaign-for-digital-payments-called-india-pay-safe-asking-people-to-ditch-cash-during-coronavirus/articleshow/74703544.cms">bank transfer </a>across all banks in the country. The technology has real-time settlement, and transfers barely take a second to go through. Unlike the developed markets, India is one of the few countries to skip the debit or credit card revolution and directly join the mobile payments trend thanks to affordable phones and inexpensive internet connectivity. The system is <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/finance/news/upi-crosses-5-lakh-crore-in-transaction-value-in-march/articleshow/81820799.cms">already designed </a>to handle a billion transactions each day, eliminating the need for cryptocurrencies for payments. At the same time, Nilekani is confident that cryptos can be a solid asset in the coming years. Blockchain as a technology has gained massive momentum, and India's IT companies are at the forefront of it, servicing hundreds of multinational clients. "Indian regulators are also considering a Central Bank Digital Currency or <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/china-is-giving-away-digital-yuan-worth-6-2-million-in-a-beijing-lottery-as-it-tests-out-its-cbdc-reports-say/articleshow/83174222.cms">CBDC</a>. I am not sure if we need a stable private coin or if a digital rupee will be good enough. We need to look at how it will help Indians, how MSMEs can access capital using <a href="https://wazirx.com/signup?invite=2kpah6gr&amp;utm_source=business-insider&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_campaign=microsite">Bitcoins</a>. No amount of tech is going to sway anyone's view," he further added. With a market cap of more than $1.5 trillion, crypto can allow the community to pour its wealth into the Indian economy. The Indian government was highly reluctant about cryptocurrency in the beginning and banned it in 2018. A Supreme Court ruling overturned the ban soon, however investors remain concerned. This is because some Indian <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/cryptocurrency/news/indias-crypto-exchanges-are-reportedly-considering-going-to-court-against-the-countrys-central-bank/articleshow/83034174.cms">banks remain cautious</a>, despite RBI’s clarifications on its 2018 circular. Even crypto exchanges have <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/cryptocurrency/news/indians-are-holding-on-to-their-cryptos-amidst-all-the-uncertainty/articleshow/82971829.cms">asked</a> the government to consider cryptocurrencies as an asset. And as they await regulations, India’s crypto players have decided to form a <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/cryptocurrency/news/wazirx-zebpay-crypto-and-others-are-setting-up-their-own-self-regulation-board-in-india/articleshow/83203195.cms">self-regulatory board</a> under the industry-body IAMAI and set some bare minimum guidelines to curb fraud. The cryptocurrency world is exceptionally polarised, and everyone has a differing point of view. Evangelists call it a revolution, technocrats believe in blockchain's potential, the nay-sayers are convinced it's a bubble, while some are just watching the circus do its thing. Smart and sensible cryptocurrency regulations are the need of the hour. SEE ALSO: <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/cryptocurrency/news/chinas-war-against-crypto-continues-as-weibo-bans-at-least-a-dozen-popular-cryptocurrency-accounts/articleshow/83309874.cms">China’s war against crypto continues as Weibo bans at least a dozen popular cryptocurrency accounts</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/heres-why-fuel-prices-in-india-may-not-come-down-in-a-big-way/slidelist/83299743.cms">Here’s why fuel prices in India may not come down in a big way ⁠— at least not this year</a>

Infosys co-founder Nandan Nilekani wants crypto in India to be treated as an asset class but not a currency

<ul><li>The Indian government has drafted a <keyword id="10714457" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="national-strategy-on-blockchain">National Strategy on Blockchain</keyword>.</li><li>This could be the next big step in the <keyword id="3264646" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="India-stack">India Stack</keyword> – an ambitious technology project Indian government embarked upon over 10 years ago.</li><li>If the implementation of UPI was revolutionary, the scale of changes that the addition of <keyword id="6355684" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Blockchain">blockchain</keyword> infrastructure can facilitate will be way, way bigger.</li></ul>Over 10 years ago, the Indian government opened up its database for private players to build products upon it. The combination of Aadhaar ⁠— the world’s largest identity database ⁠— along with the government’s payments infrastructure, riding on the proliferation of mobile phones, allowed millions of Indians to leapfrog into the digital payments era. <div type="image" title="india stack1" msid="80718503" hostid="261"></div> The sheer scale of the ambition and its success in bringing financial inclusion got the Indian government laurels from some of the biggest icons of modern technology, including <keyword id="45830" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Bill-Gates">Bill Gates</keyword>, Satya Nadella and <keyword id="164502" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Sundar-Pichai">Sundar Pichai</keyword>. And now, India is set to add blockchain infrastructure to that India Stack and the benefits could be way, way bigger than what the unified payments interface (UPI) achieved. According to the draft National Strategy on Blockchain, a government-led blockchain infrastructure can become the hub for private developers to build applications. If the India Stack allowed developers to build payments products, access to blockchain infrastructure can revolutionise products and services across healthcare, cyber security, governance, media, logistics &amp; hospitality, education, legal, energy, smart cities and so on. <div type="image" title="Blockchain" msid="80718512" hostid="261"></div> “Blockchain being a single source of truth can be used for authentication and verification of all the transactions and data, produced by various government departments,” said the draft. The government is currently accepting public opinions on the draft until February 16 through the MyGov platform. Now, what can this technology be used for? The latest draft from The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology has laid out some of its targets. <ul><li>Setting up a national framework for blockchain.</li><li>Architecture options for blockchain including private participation.</li><li>Applications of national interest for blockchain which includes e-voting, land records, pharmaceutical supply, power distribution, identity management among others.</li><li>Build centres of excellence of blockchain technology.</li></ul>The success of the India Stack is fuelling excitement around the ‘India ledger’ By opening up its database securely for private developers, India had done what no other country had. Sundar Pichai, the CEO of Alphabet, which owns the internet giant Google, in an <a href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/if-upi-payments-work-in-india-it-will-work-everywhere-sundar-pichai-ceo-google/articleshow/56341566.cms">interview</a> in 2017 had said that UPI and India Stack conversations get him excited. Pichai, who had then said we will see products being built out of India for a global stage, has since then gone on to commit $10 billion into the country’s technology ecosystem. <a href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/tech/technology/digital-india-and-india-stack-have-made-the-country-stand-out-satya-nadella/articleshow/79783076.cms?from=mdr">Talking about India Stack</a>, Microsoft founder Bill Gates had said that India is at the “cusp of leapfrogging” whereas his successor Nadella said ,”'Digital India' framework has made India 'stand out' from the rest of the world”. One of the architects of India Stack Nandan Nilekani, the co-founder of Infosys, had called it the “single most important innovation India needs”. Opening up a blockchain infrastructure for similar innovations may lead to bigger advancements in technology than UPI, which is hailed as India’s most successful digital project. “We can create our own massive blockchain ledger, say India Ledger, where all researchers and experts come together. The third is that we need to create our own journey with blockchain. Now, is the time to really work on these thoughts,” said Prasanna Lohar, head of digital innovations at DCB Bank and a blockchain expert who has been privy to the discussions around blockchain with the government. Along with the blockchain strategy, India is toying with the idea of banning private cryptocurrency and instead bringing out its own “digital rupee”. “Niti Aayog, India's think tank has been working on IndiaChain, India's own ambitious project to develop a nationwide blockchain network, which has revolutionized India’s position as one of the emerging technology players. A few months ago, a blockchain project named Vajra designed by the National Payments Corporation of India for various payment companies providing secured transactions on their online platforms or mobile applications, shows the government is taking proactive initiative to support blockchain,” said Neeraj Khandelwal, co-founder of cryptocurrency and bitcoin startup CoinDCX. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/markets/news/india-becomes-the-first-asian-country-allow-small-investors-to-directly-lend-to-the-government/articleshow/80701417.cms">India becomes the first Asian country to allow small investors to directly lend to the government</a>

The India stack that Bill Gates and Sundar Pichai so love is set to get much bigger – thanks to the Indian government’s new blockchain strategy

<a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Satya+Nadela&amp;sortorder=effectivedate">Satya Nadela</a>, the <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Microsoft&amp;sortorder=effectivedate">Microsoft</a> CEO, feels Indian IT sector has come up with the next level <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=artificial+intelligence&amp;sortorder=effectivedate">artificial intelligence</a> (AI) technologies that can be produced in the form mass scalable apps and will further drastically improve the quality and reach of education, healthcare, credit and more. 
 In a discussion with <keyword id="44604" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Nandan-Nilekani">Nandan Nilekani</keyword>, one of the architects of the country's IT infrastructure, Nadella said that such power and capability was not available earlier. 
 
He also pointed out that his company has analysed the call centre data of all citizen services in Punjab to identify major public problems. While citing his company’s work with the <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Andhra+Pradesh+government+&amp;sortorder=effectivedate">Andhra Pradesh government </a>that used machine learning to identify reasons for students dropping out of high school, he said that such public-private partnerships can significantly empower the billion-plus people in India. 
 
The IT infrastructure, Nadela referred to included <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Aadhaar&amp;sortorder=effectivedate">Aadhaar</a>, the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) that has enabled apps like <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Bhim&amp;sortorder=effectivedate">Bhim</a> to allow bank to transfer funds in a jiffy, the eKYC (electronic know your customer) that has enabled companies like <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Reliance+Jio&amp;sortorder=effectivedate">Reliance Jio</a> to enrol customers in 2-3 minutes, and eSign that allows any document to be signed electronically using Aadhaar. 
 
He also said that he was also overwhelmed by the entrepreneurial spirit in India, and said Indian startups working in the AI space were changing lives and solving everyday problems.

Microsoft's Satya Nadella says India ready to build mass-scale apps

Thanks to India’s top technologists who have helped the government to take up ambitious projects such as digitisation of records, payment systems that work across platforms, a goods &amp; <keyword id="645517" type="COMPANY" weightage="60" keywordseo="services-tax">services tax</keyword> (<keyword id="6354679" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="80" keywordseo="GST">GST</keyword>) network and digital lockers for citizens. The technologists want to build “country-scale” systems and working in close association with the government to endorse free and open source systems. This information was revealed in an Economic Times report. 
 It all started a year ago at the Le Meridien hotel in <keyword id="6354321" type="CITY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Bengaluru">Bengaluru</keyword>, Sharad Sharma, co-founder of software products think tank iSPIRT, and some volunteers gave a presentation before BJP leader <keyword id="6354886" type="PERSON" weightage="80" keywordseo="Ravi-Shankar-Prasad">Ravi Shankar Prasad</keyword>, who had just taken charge as minister for information technology, as per the ET report. 
	 

	Later that day, at an interaction with them, Prasad uttered the words "Open APIs" for the first time. API refers to Application Programming Interfaces, or tools that assist developers in writing code that interfaces with other software. 
	 

	Prasad, a lawyer-turned-politician, did not have any idea about such systems, but he promised to do "whatever it takes" to get government systems to work better. RS Sharma, the bureaucrat who was appointed as the secretary for Information Technology, nodded knowingly by the minister's side. 
	 

	The hard work paid off earlier this month when the government released its Open API policy, which will make technology systems built by the government a lot better. 
	 

	The policy and other measures that the government has recently taken to endorse free and open source systems is the effect of close coordination between the government and top technologists. 
	 

	"There is a huge amount of voluntary spirit out there and there is no harm in using that," said Sharma. "These people are highly successful in the technology field. They are brilliant architects and bring fresh, different thinking to us," he added. 
	 

	Now let’s read who all helped the government in this initiative to make the technology systems work better. <keyword id="234235" type="PERSON" weightage="80" keywordseo="Lalitesh-Katragadda">Lalitesh Katragadda</keyword>, who was country manager (Products) for <keyword id="6355629" type="CITY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Google">Google</keyword> in India, has worked on the open API policy. He is also helping the <keyword id="68188" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="80" keywordseo="Andhra-Pradesh-government">Andhra Pradesh government</keyword>'s billion dollar fibre optic rollout, which will give millions of users access to high-speed Internet. Amit Ranjan, who co-founded and sold <keyword id="1037643" type="COMPANY" weightage="80" keywordseo="SlideShare">SlideShare</keyword> to <keyword id="28120" type="CITY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Linkedin">LinkedIn</keyword> for $119 million, now works for the government's <keyword id="6623307" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="80" keywordseo="Department-of-Information-Technology">Department of Information Technology</keyword> for a token salary. His job is to find smart ways of digitising millions of records and give Indian users digital lockers. 
	 

	Katragadda and Ranjan are not alone. More such technologists, experienced in building and scaling systems used by millions of users, have begun working closely with the government, influencing policy decisions on technology and helping the government build systems like a Google or Facebook would. Pramod Varma, chief architect of the <keyword id="111459" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="80" keywordseo="Unique-Identification-Authority">Unique Identification Authority</keyword> (UID) of India, is one of the key people working on multiple projects with the government. Varma, an ardent supporter of open and scalable systems, is playing a critical role in helping the goods &amp; service tax network prepare its complex technology backbone. He is also working with the National Payments Corporation of India, an umbrella body supported by the country's largest banks, to build a next-generation payment platform. Anand Deshpande, founder &amp; CEO of Persistent Systems; Gian <keyword id="221777" type="COMPANY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Franco">Franco</keyword>, formerly of SAP; <keyword id="2346527" type="PERSON" weightage="80" keywordseo="Jay-Pullur">Jay Pullur</keyword>, founder &amp; CEO of Pramati Systems; former Googler Sanjay Jain, and <keyword id="2878005" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="80" keywordseo="Vijay-Vujjini">Vijay Vujjini</keyword>, chief technical architect at HCL Infotech for the <keyword id="6355252" type="CITY" weightage="80" keywordseo="UIDAI">UIDAI</keyword> programme, are among the others who are volunteers at iSPIRT -- the Indian Software Product Industry Round Table. "This approach is critical for building next-generation digital infrastructure," said technocrat <keyword id="44604" type="PERSON" weightage="80" keywordseo="Nandan-Nilekani">Nandan Nilekani</keyword>, who used a similar strategy of bringing in people from outside the government to work on Aadhaar, the project which aspires to give over a billion Indians a unique identification number. 
	 

	Most of these volunteers are being brought together by iSPIRT. "Now with iSPIRT there is an institutional way to take this (volunteering) forward," said Nilekani. 
	 

	The idea is to have volunteers who put the country first and have no conflicting interests, said Sharma. "You need large-scale tech guys to do country-scale technology problems," he concluded. 
	 
	(Image: Indiatimes)

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