The State government has decided to develop Visakhapatnam into a FinTech (financial technology) Valley by holding roadshows in the U.S., the Middle East, and Europe to attract leading players in the field for partnerships and investments.
After successful response to its attempt to involve Singapore in promoting the FinTech industry in the city, it has been decided to undertake overseas trips by Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu and members of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) to showcase the huge potential for investment in Visakhapatnam — the largest city in Andhra Pradesh with an IT turnover of Rs.2,000 crore and a robust industrial base.
“We signed a MoU with the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) to explore projects of mutual interest on innovative technologies such as digital payments and Blockchain (database) technology, and collaborate on the development of education programmes/curricula on FinTech,” J.A. Chowdary, Special Chief Secretary and IT Advisor to the Chief Minister, told The Hindu on Sunday. He said that the MAS and the State government would also work together on emerging FinTech trends and addressing regulatory issues related to innovations in financial services. Delegations were already sent to Boston and Silicon Valley to impress upon investors and FinTech experts to explore opportunities in the proposed FinTech Valley.
Mr. Chowdary said that MoUs would be signed for introduction of courses in Andhra University, GITAM University, and colleges such as Gayatri Vidya Parishad and L.B. College in the city.
An IBM team will visit Vijayawada to give a presentation on Blockchain applications such as digitising work flow on December 12. Mr. Chowdary said that banks and insurance companies would now move towards creating permanent digitised ledgers for easy data recovery, 100 per cent safety, and preventing hackers and cyber criminals. As there is a paradigm shift in the new-age jobs, deep digital knowledge is required.
Hence, Mr. Chowdary said that a digital university was being set up on the lines of ISB-Hyderabad in Tirupati.
Welcoming the initiative, CII-AP Chairman G.V. Shiv Kumar said that during the CII Partnership Summit being held in the city next month, the focus would be on investments in FinTech.
