Banking regulator the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has named Senapathy (Kris) Gopalakrishnan, co-founder and former co-Chairman, Infosys, as the first Chairperson of the Reserve Bank Innovation Hub (RBIH).
On August 6, 2020, RBI announced in its Statement on Developmental and Regulatory Policies issued that it would develop an Innovation Hub for promoting innovation around the financial industry by leveraging on technology and creating an environment which would be facilitating and boosting innovation.
RBIH will be led and supervised by a Governing Council (GC) led by a Chairperson
Apart from Gopalakrishnan, RBIH’s Governing Council will include nine other members such as a CEO (to be appointed); Ashok Jhunjhunwala, Institute Professor, IIT, Madras; H. Krishnamurthy, Principal Research Scientist, IISc., Bengaluru; Gopal Srinivasan, CMD, TVS Capital Funds; A.P. Hota, Ex CEO, National Payments Corporation of India.
The RBI, in its official statement, stated that the RBIH would help in creating an eco-system that would aim at promoting access to financial services and products. It will also be supporting financial inclusion.
The Hub will join hands with various financial sector institutions, technology industry and academic institutions and coordinate efforts for exchanging ideas on innovation and development of prototypes pertaining to financial excellence.
The apex bank also said that RBIH would be developing internal infrastructure for promoting fintech research and assist engagement with innovators and start-ups.
