Narendra Modi Singapore visit: PM to launch banking solution for 2 billion people; All you need to know

Narendra Modi Singapore visit: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address a gathering of around 30,000 people at the world’s largest event of financial technology companies in Singapore later this week and will also launch a banking solution that will offer services to around two billion people without bank account across the globe. PM Modi will be in Singapore from November 14 to 15 to attend a series of summits, including the East Asian summit and ASEAN meetings. During his two-day visit to the country, PM Modi is also scheduled to speak at the Fintech Festival which will have a massive gathering of global fintech companies and delegates from industry bigwigs to start-ups. “PM Modi will address 30,000 people at the festival, the biggest event of its kind in the world,” news agency PTI quoted the organisers as saying. Here are the major highlights of PM Narendra Modi’s Singapore visit and the key banking solution he will announce there: 1. With almost 400 exhibitors, India is the largest contingent at the event scheduled to take place in Singapore. PM Modi will launch APIX, a banking technology designed to reach two billion people worldwide who are still without bank accounts. 2. APIX technology is designed by software experts based out of Hyderabad, Colombo and London. It is a sophisticated technology by Boston-headquartered Virtusa, especially for smaller banks, tier 3 and 4, to reach out to people in the remote regions. 3. PM Modi will be launching the technology at the invitation of Monetary Authority of Singapore, the International Finance Corp of the World Bank and the ASEAN Banking Association, said Nikhil Menon, Virtusa’s senior vice president and Asia regional head. 4. APIX will support banks to reach out to those without bank accounts in 23 countries including the 10 ASEAN members as well as major markets such as India, and small nations including Fiji, said Menon added. 5. Fintech companies from Mumbai present at the festival are seeking opportunities in the global markets, said MahaIT Fintech Officer Suniti Nanda. “Mumbai, as a financial hub, is also a gateway for international fintech companies to enter the Indian market,” Nanda said, adding that the festival gives opportunities both to understand global market requirements and present the potential of large-scale Indian consumers. 6. Malaysian fintechs have expressed interest in joining Indian fintechs to venture into India, according to Tushar Shankar, co-founder of Mumbai-based PhiCommerce which is presenting PayPhi, a three-year old cashless system of making payments.