Shaktikanta Das, Governor, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Wednesday launched three major initiatives of the RBI, namely the PRAVAAH portal, the Retail Direct Mobile App, and a FinTech Repository in the presence of all senior officials and dignitaries of RBI, Reserve Bank Innovation Hub, fintechs, and Indian Financial Technology and Allied Services (IFTAS), according to a press statement issued by the RBI.
These three initiatives were earlier announced as part of RBI’s bi-monthly Statement on Development and Regulatory Policies in April 2023, April 2024, and December 2023 respectively. “The PRAVAAH portal will make it convenient for any individual or entity to apply online for various regulatory approvals in a seamless manner. This portal will also enhance the efficiency of various processes related to the granting of regulatory approvals and clearances by the Reserve Bank. The Retail Direct Mobile App will provide retail investors with seamless and convenient access to the retail direct platform and provide ease of transacting in government securities (G-Secs). The Fintech Repository will contain information on the Indian FinTech Sector for a better understanding of the sector from a regulatory perspective and facilitate in designing appropriate policy approaches,” according to the press statement.
PRAVAAH is a secure and centralized web-based portal for any individual or entity to seek authorization, license, or regulatory approval on any reference made by it to the Reserve Bank. The following are some of the key features available in the portal.
Submit the application online on the portal;
Track and Monitor the status of the application/reference;
Respond to any clarification/query sought by the RBI in connection with the application/reference; and
Receive a decision from the Reserve Bank in a time-bound manner.
At present, 60 application forms covering different regulatory and supervisory departments of RBI have been made available on the portal. This also includes a general purpose form for applicants to submit their requests which are not included in any other application form. More application forms will be made available as may be required. The portal can be accessed at: pravaah.rbi.org.in.
The Retail Direct portal was launched in November 2021 to facilitate retail investors to open their Retail Direct Gilt accounts with the Reserve Bank of India (rbiretaildirect.org.in) under the Retail Direct Scheme. The scheme allows retail investors to buy G-Secs in the primary auctions as well as buy and sell G-Secs in the secondary market.
With the launch of the retail direct mobile app, retail investors can now transact in G-Secs using the mobile app on their smartphones. The mobile app can be downloaded from the Play Store for Android users and App Store for iOS users. The mobile app can also be downloaded using the following QR code.
The FinTech Repository aims to capture essential information about FinTech entities, their activities, technology uses, etc. FinTechs, both regulated and unregulated, are encouraged to contribute to the Repository accessible at the URL: fintechrepository.rbihub.in.
Simultaneously, a related repository for only RBI-regulated entities (banks and NBFCs) on their adoption of emerging technologies (like artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), cloud computing, distributed ledger technology (DLT), quantum, etc.), called EmTech Repository is also being launched and can be accessed at the URL: emtechrepository.rbihub.in.
The FinTech and EmTech Repositories are secure web-based applications and are managed by the Reserve Bank Innovation Hub (RBIH), a wholly-owned subsidiary of RBI. The repository would enable the availability of aggregate sectoral-level data, trends, analytics, etc., that would be useful for both policymakers and participating industry members. Reserve Bank of India encourages the FinTechs and Regulated Entities to actively contribute to the Repositories.
