India has developed one of the most comprehensive digital public finance platforms in the world. The Unified Payments Interface (UPI), Account Aggregator (AA), Unified Lending Interface (ULI), and Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) have driven large-scale financial inclusion, says Thomas Krogh Jensen, CEO, Copenhagen Fintech, a hub for fintech representatives across the Nordic region. “This scale is hyper interesting for Nordic fintech companies,” Jensen said in an interview with The Indian Express.
India and Denmark can collaborate in multiple areas, including sustainable finance, cross-border payments and wealth/insurtech and MSME digitisation, he added. Denmark is an ideal launching pad and investor-friendly destination for fintech companies, Jensen stated. Edited Excerpts:
What is your view on the Indian fintech sector?
India has built perhaps the most complete public digital finance stack in the world. Aadhaar is at population scale and processed 221 crore authentications in August 2025 alone; UPI is clearing around 2,000 crore payments a month; and newer rails such as the AA framework and the evolving ULI/OCEN (Open Credit Enablement Network) are pushing consented data-sharing and streamlined credit. The ONDC, meanwhile, has crossed 28.8 crore cumulative orders across retail, mobility and logistics. On top sit globally significant private players such as Razorpay, PhonePe, Groww, Moneyview, Acko and many more — showing the ecosystem’s depth. Of course this scale is hyper interesting for Nordic fintech companies.
India has given UPI and networks like ONDC to the world. What are some such innovations coming out of Denmark?
The Nordics are a prolific fintech lab. Notable Denmark/Nordic-rooted firms include Pleo (a spend management platform born in Copenhagen), Lunar (a Nordic challenger bank), Flatpay (fast-growing merchant payments provider), Tradeshift (focused on B2B networks/supply-chain finance with Danish founders), Chainalysis (focused on blockchain analytics with Danish co-founders), and Synthesia (focused on AI video with Danish founders and a large enterprise footprint). These are different from public rails like UPI/ONDC, but they show the region’s product innovation and scale mindset in financial services.
What are some promising areas of collaboration between India and Denmark, especially in sustainable finance and fintech space?
There are multiple areas where both countries can partner. One, sustainable finance/ climate fintech — Denmark’s strength in green solutions pairs naturally with India’s transition needs. Agreena helps farmers finance the move to regenerative practices through Europe’s largest soil-carbon programme — capabilities that can support India’s agri-transition and MRV (measurement, reporting, verification).
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Second is cross-border payments and treasury. Centiglobe enables instant, traceable, two-way cross-border payments via tokenised deposits — now integrated with Mastercard Move. It can be relevant for India-Nordic trade corridors. Banking Circle powers payments for over 650 institutions with nearly 1 trillion euro processed annually, which can be useful infrastructure for Indian fintechs expanding into Europe.
Third, wealth/insurtech & MSME digitisation. Indian scale plus Nordic product craftsmanship makes for strong co-innovation. Particularly where AI, open finance and RegTech (regulatory technology) intersect (e.g., AA-based wealth journeys, SME working capital using OCEN/ULI). Broader industry analysis from WEF/Accenture and NVIDIA also points to AI-powered risk, customer and productivity plays that both markets can co-develop.
What incentives does Denmark provide to Indian fintechs that are looking to set up shop?
A Copenhagen Fintech Lab has been set up, which is a central hub/co-working lab with programmes and community to soft-land and scale. Also, there is a Startup Denmark — a dedicated visa route for non-EU founders with approved business plans. Under the programme, residence/work permit is typically granted for up to two years, with a provision to extend further as well.
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We also have a regulatory sandbox through which the Danish Financial Supervisory Authority’s (FSA) FT Lab lets fintechs test innovative models with supervisors in a controlled environment — useful for novel payments, AI or blockchain propositions.
For market entry, we have an ‘Invest in Denmark’ initiative, which is a part of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, based in Bangalore. It offers strategic advice and counselling, free of charge.
How can India and Denmark partner in the climate fintech space?
There are three clear opportunity pools for Denmark/Nordic-India collaboration:
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- Transition finance and MRV: Tools that verify emissions outcomes (farm, MSME, industrial clusters) and connect them to finance, combining Danish/Nordic data sharing frameworks expertise with India’s AA/Open-Finance rails.
- Green payments and treasury: Carbon-aware payments/FX and supplier financing using real-time sustainability data to influence pricing and working capital.
- Retail green wealth: India’s growing investor base can access credible green products (bonds, funds) with enhanced disclosures and AI-assisted suitability areas where Nordic practices are mature.
How big do you see climate finance growing in terms of numbers?
The global green finance market was valued at $4.18 trillion (2023) and is projected to reach $28.71 trillion by 2033, indicating a CAGR (compounded annual growth rate) of 21.25 per cent. Green fintech market growth is projected at 22.4 per cent CAGR between 2024 and 2029. These numbers indicate a double-digit, long-cycle growth market where India’s demand and the Nordics’ supply of technology/standards can meet.
How many Indian fintechs operate in Denmark and how many Denmark fintechs have a presence in India?
Several Indian companies have established their presence in Denmark. There are over 35 Indian companies registered and active in Denmark including Infosys, TCS, HCL Tech and LTI Mindtree within the IT space. They support the IT requirements of several large Nordic banks and we hope that this will lay a foundation for closer cooperation between fintech as well from the 2 countries. For Denmark, practical entry paths for Indian fintechs include the Startup Denmark visa, the Danish FSA sandbox, and partnerships with startups and scaleups across the Nordic region. Copenhagen Fintech and The Trade Council of Denmark stand ready to support both in Denmark and in India. Copenhagen and Denmark remain an ideal launch pad for the Nordics ranking high within the ease of doing business and very favourable business framework conditions.