Ratan Tata, Vijay Kelkar and Nandan Nilekani establish Avanti Finance

With a focus on delivering credit to under-served and un-served segments in India, Ratan Tata, Vijay Kelkar and Nandan Nilekani have come together to establish a technology-enabled financial inclusion vehicle, Avanti Finance, a statement said on Monday.

Speaking on the occasion, Tata Trusts Chairman Tata said: "It will be a platform to impact the poor through credit at individual and community levels to create a lasting improvement in their livelihoods and standard of living, ushering prosperity."

The aim is to leverage on the social sector presence of Tata Trusts and other like-minded partners and the rapidly evolving India Stack (Jan Dhan-Aadhar-Mobile), UPI (Unified Payments Interface) and payments bank ecosystem, the statement said.

Appreciating the initiative, the National Institute of Public Finance and Policy Chairman Kelkar stated access to credit at an affordable cost is still a challenge.

Expressing himself humbled by the initiative, Infosys co-founder Nilekani said the technology is an important differentiator and allows us to make a difference in many ways than one.

The entity will apply for registration to the Reserve Bank of India in the coming days and it is expected to establish operations before the end of the current fiscal.

--IANS

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