Ripple opened a new office in Mumbai as it expands into the world's largest destination for remittances. The company appointed Navin Gupta as country manager, drawing on his two decades of experience
Ripple opened a new office in Mumbai as it expands into the world's largest destination for remittances. The company appointed Navin Gupta as country manager, drawing on his two decades of experience in transaction banking, product management and global strategy at HSBC and Citibank.
India receives more remittances than any other nation. "India is the largest recipient of corporate and retail remittance worldwide, totaling close to US$71 billion," Gupta said. Millions send money home from abroad, seeking faster and cheaper cross-border transfers.
"The businesses and Indian expatriates sending money into the country want their cross-border payments to be as fast and seamless as payments made within India's domestic digital payment network," Gupta said. Ripple's blockchain platform handles transfers faster and cheaper than traditional banking corridors. Gupta called it "a transformative component of India's economy" with potential to serve the unbanked.
India's financial system is undergoing transformation. Prime Minister Narendra Modi introduced a financial inclusion program in 2014 meant to end what he called "financial untouchability." Close to 300 million Indians opened bank accounts for the first time. The government launched Digital India in 2015 to create a digital economy and promote cashless payments.
The expansion of banking customers created demand for fintech services. IBM lists mobile banking, payments, digital lending, point-of-sale systems, blockchain and cryptocurrencies as entering a "hyper-growth phase" in India.
Brad Garlinghouse, Ripple's CEO, said the Mumbai office would allow Ripple to "respond to the rapidly-growing demand for frictionless payments by our current customers Axis Bank and YES Bank, as well as other banks and non-banks across the country." YES Bank, among India's largest private banks, is using Hyperledger Fabric for a blockchain vendor financing solution.
India's government is exploring blockchain applications. The central bank has a research unit developing a platform model for banking applications, with potential uses in land registries and data security.
The cryptocurrency sector is making headway. Blockchain, a bitcoin wallet provider, announced a partnership with Unocoin, a bitcoin exchange based in Bengaluru, to enter the Indian market. Unocoin has 400,000 users, added 50,000 new users last month, partners with 1,900 businesses and processes 500 daily transactions with an average value of Rs 30,000, or about $468.
