The new norms have caused much angst and forced many fintechs to rework their business models. In the long run, however, clear, consistent and prompt regulatory oversight could be beneficial for the entire ecosystem.
“The pace at which circulars are issued by regulators in India, fintechs are super confused—(wondering) if they should be hiring computer science engineers or compliance officers.” When Pravin Jadhav tweeted that message with a tearful smiley face on September 30, it was only half in jest.
The founder of Raise Financial Services, which operates stockbroking platform Dhan, was ruing the onslaught of circulars from the Reserve Bank of India, the banking regulator. Fintechs have been at the receiving end of those diktats.