The largest fintech conference in the world – Global Fintech Fest (GFF) – is back with its third edition. Organized by the Department of Economic Affairs, Government of India, Fintech Convergence Council (FCC), the Payments Council of India (PCI) and the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), GFF 2022 will be held September 20 – 22, 2022 at the Jio World Convention Centre in Mumbai. Pre-event festivities will begin virtually on September 19, 2022. The theme of the hybrid event this year is ‘Creating a Sustainable Financial World - Global | Inclusive| Green’.

GFF 2022 is being supported by the International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA), Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI), National Investment Promotion & Facilitation Agency (Invest India), Startup India, Reserve Bank Innovation Hub (RBIH) and ONDC. Special Partners of GFF 2022 are World Bank Group, KNOMAD, Better Than Cash Alliance and International Finance Corporation (IFC).

Elaborating on the theme of the conference, Mr. Kris Gopalakrishnan, Chair - GFF 2022, Chairman, Axilor Venture and Co-founder, Infosys, said, “Our Financial institutions play a fundamental role in achieving sustainable goals by reorienting investments towards more sustainable technologies and businesses and contributing to the creation of a low-carbon, climate-resilient, and circular economy. These moves not only give a big boost to India’s commitment at COP26 to reaching net-zero by 2070 but also achieve ambitious targets like 175 gigawatts of renewable energy capacity by this year.”

“Inclusive economy and sustainable development are two of the most crucial demands of the 21^st century. The challenging pandemic years have demonstrated that in India wider spread and deeper penetration of fintech can drive both. GFF 2022 will showcase India’s unique, affordable, inclusive, sustainable and equitable model of global fintech leadership,” said Mr. Naveen Surya, Member, GFF 2022 Advisory Board and Chairman, Fintech Convergence Council. 

Mr. Srinivas Jain, Member, GFF 2022 Advisory Board and ED & Head of Strategy, SBI Mutual Funds, points out, “In today’s world it is imperative that sustainable finance is made the cornerstone of our investment decisions. In other words, all our long-term investment decisions must consider the ESG (economic, social, governance) factors. One important means of addressing this is fintech, and at GFF 2022 we will debate and discuss at length how best to achieve that.”

“The catastrophic changes brought by the Covid pandemic in numerous spheres of our lives make it imperative that we put in the best efforts to further the agendas of inclusiveness and sustainability across the globe. In this context, the fintech and the financial services fraternity must innovate to build a sustainable, inclusive and climate-conscious financial world. At GFF 2022 we will deeply deliberate on this crucial issue,” said Ms. Smita Aggarwal, Member GFF 2022 Advisory Board and Global Investment Advisor, Flourish Ventures.

Among stalwarts from India who will share their insights at the GFF 2022 are Shri Shaktikanta Das, Governor, Reserve Bank of India; Shri Rajeev Chandrasekhar, Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology, Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, Govt. of India; Shri Jayant Sinha, Member of Parliament, (Lok Sabha) and Chairman, Parliamentary Standing Committee on Finance; Dr. V Anantha Nageswaran, Chief Economic Advisor, Ministry of Finance, Government of India; Dr. R.S. Sharma, CEO, National Health Authority, Ministry of Health & Family Welfare; Smt. Madhabi Puri Buch, Chairperson, SEBI; Shri Injeti Srinivas, Chairperson, International Financial Services Centre Authority;

Shri Amitabh Kant, India’s G20 Sherpa; Mr. Alkesh Wadhwani, Director Poverty Alleviation, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation; Mr. Vijay Shekhar Sharma, Chief Executive Officer PayTM, Ms. Shinjini Kumar, Co-founder, Salt, and Ms. Suchitra Mukherjee, Co-founder and CEO, Kaleidofin.

Experts who will converge on the GFF 2022 platform from various other countries include Alderman Vincent Keaveny, The Rt Hon the Lord Mayor, City of London;  Sopnendu Mohanty, Chief Fintech Officer, Monetary Authority of Singapore; Alexandre Tombini, Head BIS Americas Office, BIS Innovation Hub; José Manuel Marqués, Head of the Financial Innovations Division, Banco de España; Moreno González Othón Martino, Director - Policy and Research, Payment Systems Division, Bank of Mexico; Adolfo Sarmiento, Head of Economic Policy and Markets, Central Bank of Uruguay, and Tesfaye Hailemichael, Member of Capital Markets Development Consultative Group, National Bank of Ethiopia. 

“The growing role of fintech in India in successfully making finance more organised and inclusive can hardly be overstated. The spread and penetration of fintech across the country is vital to the success of Digital India. I am sure, the Global Fintech Fest this year will make a meaningful contribution to that effort,” said Ms. Lizzie Chapman, member – GFF 2022 Consulting Council, and Co-founder & CEO, ZestMoney.

Policymakers, regulators, administrators and industry captains from India and across the globe, addressing the conference, will discuss and debate the steps that should be taken to drive progress across the four pillars that are aligned with the essential elements of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs):  Planet, People, Prosperity and Principles of Governance.