Productive capital, inclusion key to next growth phase: RBI Dy Guv

RBI Deputy Governor Swaminathan J says India's path to Viksit Bharat@2047 depends on productive capital allocation, meaningful financial inclusion and strong customer protection

India’s economic growth depends on strengthening capital to create jobs and capabilities, financial inclusion, and customer protection, said Swaminathan J, deputy governor at the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

 

Swaminathan said this at the third International Finance and Accounting Conference at the Indian Institute of Management, Jammu, on February 27. A copy of his speech was uploaded on the RBI’s website on Tuesday.

 

“…the journey to Viksit Bharat@2047 is a collective endeavour. It will require sound institutions that can support growth through cycles; inclusion that improves real outcomes for households and enterprises; and customer protection that keeps pace with innovation,” he said. The aspiration to be a developed country will “steadily become a lived reality for millions” if the country aligns capital with “capability, innovation with safeguards, and inclusion with well-being.”

 

Swaminathan noted that development is not defined only by gross domestic product or GDP per capita, but by the quality of daily life — better jobs, stronger households, safer financial choices and resilience during shocks.

 

“It is about whether growth feels real, broad-based and inclusive,” he said.

 

Finance will play a “pivotal role” in mobilising savings, allocating capital and managing risk. “Done well, it will support enterprises and households across the country,” he said.

 

He stressed that leadership in finance requires judgement and discipline. “It is about what you choose to reward, what you choose to question, and what you choose to fix early,” Swaminathan said, adding that integrity in numbers is as important as the numbers themselves.

 

“In the age of dashboards and AI, it is easy to forget that accounting is a discipline of clarity. It forces us to recognise losses, admit uncertainty, value assets prudently, and explain performance in a way that others can rely on. In many organisations, the true difference between a good institution and a weak one is not how fast it grows, but how truthfully it measures itself.

 

He cautioned that while a product can reach 10 million people within months, a credit model can approve loans in seconds, and a payments platform can process massive volumes, it means that harm can scale just as quickly if design is poor, controls are weak, or incentives are misaligned.

 

“Therefore, in finance, speed is not always a virtue. Sometimes speed hides weakness. Technology is a force multiplier. It amplifies good design as well as bad design. Eventually, the future will reward institutions that can combine efficiency and innovation with prudence, and growth with resilience.”