Being a part of one of the fastest-growing sectors in India comes with its share of challenges. Such is the state of the fintech sector in India. The sector, inevitably, has been a part of all companies – due to its nature. This requires the companies operating in the sector to adhere to some of the most stringent regulations in the industry. There are times when the industry groans and moans about the regulations, they are vital to be in place as the very nature of the industry is monetary.
To deal with these regulations, most industry players eagerly wait for the Budget, not only for the initiatives and provisions announced but also hoping that there might be an update in the rules – in the favor of industry players while caring for the consumers.
Changes Brought About By The Budget 2024
The government has made a bold decision to allocate a corpus of one lakh crores towards the youth training which can bring about a lot of transactory action in the sector. Apart from that, due to the raised income tax limit, the market can now expect more disposable income to be utilized. Thus, resulting in more money being circulated in the market.
Apart from that, a significant chunk of benefits were extended to the startups including the tax benefits. Facilities such as these are decisive to promote entrepreneurial spirit and propel innovation. Something which the fintech sector has been quite blessed with yet needs more of.
How Can The Fintech Companies Navigate These Changes?
There were a lot of groundbreaking provisions announced at the Budget 2024. The economy, if all goes well, is expected to churn out transactions worth millions. This will require a strong infrastructure in place to handle and carry out such amounts securely and smoothly.
There are a few things the industry needs to attend to to navigate the changes:
Upskilling
The booming fintech industry demands more manpower to facilitate the industry’s growth. And that is exactly what the industry seems to be missing. The industry is in dire need of skilled individuals who are capable of delivering quality services and are well-trained.
More than 60% of fintech companies in India have reported a shortage of skilled manpower with IT and Engineering being one of the departments in more dire conditions. Some of the most in-demand skills are AI (Artificial Intelligence), cybersecurity and Data and Analytics.
Cybersecurity
As more and more industry players are now tapping into newer markets, including the vast and mostly untouched rural areas – matching financial literacy is challenging. This exposes the naive users to cyberattacks.
Adding this to the amount getting pumped into the economy, more and more cybersecurity practices need to be inculcated into the operations to ensure loyalty and retention of the users.
Digital Infrastructure
India is one of the biggest markets for digital payment with one of the biggest players in the market being from India. To support this industry, which is growing at an exponential rate, the industry players need to have a robust infrastructure in place which can carry out operations without any glitches.
More and more innovation and investment are required to build a sturdy infrastructure. Especially if the fintech industry wants to stand tall on the tests of time. Of course, this can be done only if the industry pulls and engages its resources towards the greater good rather than individual gains.
To sum it up, while all industry experts can agree that the Budget 2024 was a mixed bag for the sector – the real impact will be created by those who know how to make the best use of the provisions. And with that being said, there is also a silent appeal throughout the industry to collaborate and propel the industry towards a more successive future.
This article has been authored by Mr Praveen Paulose, CEO & MD, Celusion Technologies. At 10, a little boy took a fancy to programming and started tinkering with computers. As an engineer he took up a job but during his free time, he was building a sudoku app on his mobile. This started germinating into a business idea of building mobile apps for businesses. He brainstormed with two of his friends and endless cups of coffees later, a fintech company was born. This happened in 2004 when startups were not even considered cool and the young man was just 26. Praveen is passionate about technology and spends most of the day either programming or reading about the next big thing in technology and how that can be applied to their offerings. Praveen loves solving complicated business challenges using technology. He is always thrilled to see a stranger using a piece of software created by Celusion. His business mantra is summed up in three words, “Possible is Everything.”
