The Government of Andhra Pradesh (GoAP) and the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) on Saturday forged an understanding for the establishment of a Centre of Excellence and marketplace for Singapore-based startups in the financial technologies (FinTech) space at Visakhapatnam.
As per the agreement, the GoAP will create infrastructure for the companies proposed to be set up by MAS in the port city.
Joint projects
The MAS will also undertake joint innovation projects in digital and mobile payments, big data, flexible platforms and other emerging FinTech. J.A. Chowdary, Advisor (IT) to GoAP and Sopnendu Mohanty, Chief FinTech Officer of MAS, signed the MoU in the presence of Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu and IT Minister Palle Raghunatha Reddy at the CM’s residence here. Addressing media persons later, Mr. Mohanty said MAS possessed the technological expertise in FinTech and looked forward to utilising the talented manpower available in A.P. It would share the Intellectual Property Rights with the GoAP and facilitate the flow of investments into the FinTech facility. “We have a Financial Technology and Innovation Group (FTIG) that frames regulatory policies, develops strategies and manages risks across the financial spectrum. Some of its technologies can be of help to Indian bankers in curbing frauds like the breaching of security of lakhs of debit cards,” Mr. Mohanty said. Mr. Raghunatha Reddy said A.P had taken various initiatives in Social Media, Mobile, Analytics and Cloud (SMAC) and the partnership with MAS was intended to develop Visakhapatnam as the ‘FinTech valley of India’. Mr. Chowdary revealed the government’s plan to implement a ‘blockchain technology’ in the Civil Supplies Department on an experimental basis for plugging the siphoning of funds. More such initiatives were on the anvil, he said, and asserted that the partnership with MAS would help in making India’s fledgling Banking, Financial Services and Insurance (BFSI) sector a more secure ecosystem. Special Chief Secretary to CM Satish Chandra and Latha Ayyar, COO of Bharti AXA Life and Special Representative (IT and Innovation) of GoAP were present.
MAS has technological expertise and looks forward to utilising talented manpower in A.P.
Sopnendu Mohanty
Chief FinTech Officer, MAS
