Back-to-back India Days in Britain to boost bilateral investments

The UK government and City of London Corporation Tuesday announced plans to host an India Day next month to focus on boosting bilateral investment flows between Britain and India in the field of financial services.

The India Day on July 16 - a day-long programme of speeches, panels and discussions at Mansion House in the heart of London - will follow the first-ever India Day in the Houses of Parliament on Monday to mark the launch of the ongoing UK-India Week 2019.

"I am delighted to be hosting India Day next month. It will be this year's flagship UK-India financial services event organised by the UK government's Department for International Trade," said Peter Estlin, the Lord Mayor of the City of London.

"The day aims to celebrate the strength of UK-India ties, discussing how we can work together to take our near 20 billion pounds bilateral relationship to the next level, and where we can work together more closely in areas like fintech, green finance, insurance and infrastructure," he said.

The event, which will explore new opportunities for collaboration in financial and professional services, will be a precursor to the Lord Mayor's planned India visit in September.

"India Day is an integral part of our strategy to maximise the involvement of UK businesses in the Indian diaspora," said Crispin Simon, the UK government's Trade Commissioner for South Asia.

He said the UK and India were at an exciting phase in their economic relationship.

"Prime Minister Narendra Modi has just been re-elected with a bigger majority and has an ambitious vision for India infrastructure development and smart cities, a growing financial services market, and a commitment to sustainable energy," Simon said.

"The UK has the expertise, capital, services and technology to support this ambition. Prime Minister Modi has described India's relationship with the UK as an 'unbeatable combination'," he said.

Simon, who is also Britain's Deputy High Commissioner in Mumbai, further highlighted the UK's position as the fourth most innovative country globally.

With India boasting some of the lowest mobile data costs globally with 1.2 billion internet subscribers, he said the conditions for collaboration and innovation were just right.

"In addition, the economic fundamentals are undeniable," he noted.

Besides the Lord Mayor and London's Deputy Mayor for Business Rajesh Agrawal, the panellists and speakers next month will include UK and Indian Cabinet Ministers and senior leaders from leading UK and Indian financial services organisations.

The themes for the day will include Innovation in Financial Services, Opportunities in India's Growing Economy, Investing in Stressed Assets, the Future of Insurance, Green Infrastructure and Investing in Innovation.