India achieved in 6 years what would otherwise take 5 decades: World Bank

A document titled “G20 policy recommendations for advancing financial inclusion and productivity gains through Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI)”  that was drafted by the Global Partnership for Financial Inclusion in collaboration with the World Bank was presented in New Delhi during the G-20 summit. “Inclusive DPI can spark digital contracts and e-commerce, fostering efficient markets and opening doors for previously marginalised individuals.” the forward of the document penned by Queen Maxima of Netherlands mentioned. 

The document cited India’s Aadhar and Unified Payment Interface (UPI) as an example for promoting financial inclusion in developing countries. 

"The India stack exemplifies this approach, combining digital ID, interoperable payments, a digital credentials ledger, and account aggregation. In just six years, it has achieved a remarkable 80 per cent financial inclusion rate, a feat that would have taken nearly five decades without a DPI approach," the document observed. 

It also highlighted how the framework for data protection bolstered the transformation in India as well as Brazil. 

"For some nonbank financial companies (NBFCs) in India, the AA (Account Aggregator) ecosystem enabled an 8 per cent higher conversion rate in SME (Small and Medium Sized Enterprises) lending, a 65 per cent savings in depreciation costs, and a 66 per cent reduction in costs related to fraud detection. According to industry estimates, banks’ costs of onboarding customers in India decreased from USD 23 to USD 0.1 with the use of DPI," the document mentioned.