The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) introduced three significant initiatives on Tuesday (May 28, 2024) through a press release: the PRAVAAH portal, a Retail Direct mobile app, and a FinTech Repository.
These three initiatives were previously announced in RBI’s bi-monthly Statements on Development and Regulatory Policies in April 2023, December 2023, and April 2024.
These tools aim to enhance regulatory efficiency, improve retail investment access, and support the fintech ecosystem.
Details about these three initiatives are provided below.
What is PRAVAAH Portal?
PRAVAAH is a secure, centralized web portal for individuals or entities to request authorization, licenses, or regulatory approvals from the Reserve Bank. Key features of the portal include:
– Online application submission.
– Application status tracking and monitoring.
– Responding to RBI clarifications or queries.
– Receiving timely decisions from the Reserve Bank.
RBI Retail Direct Mobile App
The Retail Direct Portal, launched in November 2021, makes it easy for retail investors to open Retail Direct Gilt accounts with the Reserve Bank of India under the Retail Direct Scheme.
The scheme enables retail investors to purchase government securities (G-Secs) during primary auctions and trade them in the secondary market.
- With the launch of the RBI Retail Direct mobile app, retail investors can now buy and sell G-Secs directly from their smartphones.
- Android users can download the app from the Play Store, and iOS users can find it on the App Store.
FinTech Repository
The FinTech Repository is designed to gather essential information about FinTech entities, their activities, and technology uses. Both regulated and unregulated FinTech companies are encouraged to contribute to this repository.
Also Read: Why has RBI fined ICICI Bank and YES Bank?
Additionally, a related repository for RBI-regulated entities (banks and NBFCs) on their use of emerging technologies (such as AI, ML, Cloud Computing, DLT, Quantum, etc.) called the EmTech Repository is also being launched.
These secure, web-based applications are managed by the Reserve Bank Innovation Hub (RBIH), a wholly-owned subsidiary of RBI.
The repositories will provide aggregated sectoral data, trends, and analytics useful for policymakers and industry participants. The Reserve Bank of India encourages FinTechs and regulated entities to actively contribute to these repositories.
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