Ajinkya Kawale

CoinDCX user base rises 16% in H1CY26 as trading value declines 37%

The crypto exchange added 3 million registered users in the first half of CY26, while trading value declined amid evolving market dynamics and growing institutional participation

Indian fintechs eye overseas licences as they push into global markets

Cross-border payment firms are seeking licences in markets such as Canada, the US and Singapore as they look to build a multi-country presence beyond India

Meta invests $900 mn in Cred, Kunal Shah to head WhatsApp globally

Meta acquires a minority stake in Cred through a $900 million investment and appoints founder Kunal Shah as global head of WhatsApp

Agent marketplace one of our large bets, says PayU CPO Manas Mishra

PayU is building AI-powered tools and agent marketplaces as it bets on agentic commerce and payments becoming the next frontier in digital transactions

Smaller AI models likely powering India's escalating deepfake menace

Cheap, customised AI tools are making deepfake scams harder to detect, exposing banks, fintechs and consumers to rising fraud risks

NPCI unveils Drunix to support blockchain and tokenisation ecosystems

The open-source platform is designed to help enterprises build blockchain networks, digital asset ecosystems and tokenisation platforms at scale

Low-cost AI models are fuelling India's growing deepfake fraud threat

Customised applications built on open-source AI models are enabling sophisticated deepfake frauds at lower costs, raising concerns across banking, fintech and digital platforms

Razorpay moves closer to market debut with confidential IPO filing

The fintech major has confidentially filed draft papers with Sebi for an IPO that could raise ₹5,000-6,000 crore and value the company at up to ₹60,000 crore

India needs a complete sovereign AI stack, not just models: Bessemer

Bessemer Venture Partners says India's AI ambitions must extend from compute and data infrastructure to agents, services and robotics

RBI issues payment system authorisation norms under new master directions

The new framework consolidates existing regulations and introduces perpetual authorisation for payment system operators subject to regulatory compliance

Fintechs get boost from global AI firms as payment processing demand rises

Growing demand for AI services in India is creating a fast-expanding cross-border payments opportunity for domestic fintech companies

Fintech firm Razorpay's confidential DRHP filing likely this month

The Bengaluru-based fintech firm is expected to seek a valuation of ₹50,000-60,000 crore through an IPO that could raise ₹5,000-6,000 crore

India shouldn't look to West for agentic payment protocols: Pine Labs CEO

Pine Labs has launched an agentic payments protocol for UPI transactions, with CEO Amrish Rau calling for India-led standards in autonomous commerce

RBI asks banks to assess AI risk gaps, draw action plan by June-end

RBI has directed banks to assess cyber risks from advanced AI models such as Claude Mythos and submit mitigation plans by June-end

In an AI world, compromised security will lead to fraud: Matthew Driver

Mastercard says stronger cybersecurity, agent verification and consent frameworks will be critical as AI agents begin making purchases on behalf of consumers

RBI recognises Sahamati Foundation as SRO for account aggregator ecosystem

RBI has recognised Sahamati Foundation as the SRO for the Account Aggregator ecosystem, strengthening governance and trust in open finance

Mastercard expands value-added services push amid UPI dominance

The payments major is expanding into cybersecurity, analytics, AI and loyalty services as it seeks new growth avenues beyond its traditional payments network business

Digital NBFCs' share of personal loans grows both in value and volume terms

Digital NBFCs accounted for 77 per cent of personal loan sanction volumes and 19 per cent of sanction value in FY26, even as growth in loan volumes slowed sharply

UPI expands international presence to Cambodia through KHQR linkage

Indian travellers can use UPI apps at over 4.5 million merchant outlets in Cambodia, while Cambodian visitors will gain access to UPI-enabled payments in India in the next phase

South-East Asian markets on UPI radar as NPCI pushes global expansion

NPCI International Payments is exploring bilateral UPI linkages with Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia to expand the global footprint of India's payments network