Jayant Sinha urges fintech to bring up innovative products to connect more users.

NEW DELHI: Observing that there is a huge growth potential for the fintech sector, former Union Minister Jayant Sinha on Friday said they should come up with innovative products having compelling value propositions to connect more users.

The former Minister of State for Finance said young people are now using fintech products, but there is a considerable size of middle-aged people who are still potential customers.

"We have to get to people who are not using these services right now... we need to really reach out to them. We need to give them a customised experience. So, it is easy for them to use them," Sinha, who is Chairman of the Standing Committee on Finance, said at a virtual conference organised by CII.

For example, he said, Fintech should design products for housewives for their everyday transaction and small merchants on the street too, who can bring in behavioural change as far as the transaction is concerned.

The behaviour change is something that the fintech have to focus on, he added. "Cash has its own advantages as well...why would anyone flip over and start using fintech products...I think it has to be a compelling value proposition that fintech companies have to thought through," Sinha noted.

Applauding the role played by fintech during the lockdown, he said, it has helped in seamless transfer of benefit to the needy.

"Fintech innovations have really enabled us to get through a very difficult period once in a century economic and public health crisis... this really demonstrates that if you think ahead if you put in place various platforms and necessary innovation that they become extremely important during the time of crisis," he noted.

T R Ramachandran, Group Country Manager, India & South Asia, Visa said currently the domestic market has over 2,000 fintech startups, with Mumbai and Bangalore leading the pack.

"We should acknowledge and leverage our quest to be the best fintech destination in the world," he said.

Citing industry estimates, he said the investment in Indian fintech space over the last four and half year has crossed over $10 billion with over half of this, $5.4 billion, being funded in the last 18 months.

"And obviously, fintech (firms) in payments (space) have received the highest investment of $2.47 billion. So what led to this gold rush? I think it is the perfect catalysis of the circumstances. There is a massive untapped market, easy access to capital as well as the rising customer expectations," Ramachandran said.

(PTI)