Richika Dadheech, Founder and Managing Director (MD) of FiatPe, believes real-time policy updates around data protection, compliance, and innovation have helped UPI become a globally recognised platform, while zero MDR has played a critical role in accelerating adoption. She believes different pricing for high-volume transactions can help payment systems stay secure and reliable, support long-term investment, and still remain inclusive. In an interview with Mint, Dadheech shared her views on expectations of the fintech industry from Budget 2026, key challenges the industry is facing, and how AI is shaping the industry.
What are the key expectations of the fintech industry from Budget 2026?
India’s digital payments ecosystem is undergoing rapid growth, and a key reason it has scaled successfully is the evolution of policy frameworks alongside it.
Real-time, thoughtful policy updates around data protection, compliance, and innovation have helped UPI mature into a globally recognised platform while maintaining trust and stability.
There is also an important conversation around sustainability. Zero MDR has played a critical role in accelerating adoption, especially among small merchants and consumers.
At the same time, differentiated economics for high-volume use cases can help ensure that payment systems remain secure, reliable, and capable of long-term investment without compromising inclusivity.
Ultimately, the strength of the ecosystem will depend on how well scale, sustainability, and trust continue to reinforce each other.
What do digital payment adoption and growth in India indicate?
India’s rapid digital payment adoption signals a deeper structural shift in how money moves across the economy.
It reflects growing trust in digital infrastructure, increasing formalisation of transactions, and a cultural shift toward convenience-driven financial behaviour.
Digital payments are no longer urban-centric or limited to e-commerce; they have moved from being optional to being expected in many everyday use cases—from kirana stores and transport to healthcare and education.
Several factors have driven this momentum. The expansion of UPI has played a central role by offering a low-cost, interoperable, and intuitive payment rail.
Smartphone penetration, affordable data, and multilingual payment interfaces have further accelerated adoption across demographics.
On the supply side, widespread deployment of QR codes, payment gateways, and streamlined merchant onboarding tools has reduced friction for small businesses.
Importantly, digital payments have also delivered tangible benefits—faster settlements, improved cash flow visibility, and reduced dependency on cash handling.
Together, these elements indicate that digital payments in India are no longer an alternative but the default, forming the backbone of a broader digital financial ecosystem.
What are the key steps toward stronger cybersecurity and fraud prevention?
As digital payments scale to billions of transactions, reliability and security are no longer backend issues—they directly shape user trust.
From a fintech operator’s perspective, the focus today is on building systems that can anticipate risk rather than merely react to it.
This means investing continuously in real-time fraud monitoring, layered authentication, and secure architecture that protects users without complicating the payment experience.
Equally important is system resilience. Payments have become mission-critical for both consumers and merchants, and even short disruptions can impact livelihoods.
Strengthening redundancy, improving failover mechanisms, and utilising real-time performance dashboards are crucial to ensuring consistent uptime, particularly during peak transaction periods.
Fraud itself is evolving in sophistication, which is where technology plays a decisive role.
Behavioural analytics and AI-led anomaly detection are increasingly helping platforms spot unusual patterns early and prevent losses without adding friction for genuine users.
At the same time, user awareness cannot be overlooked. Continuous education on safe payment practices remains one of the most effective tools for reducing fraud.
Together, these measures help build a payments ecosystem that is not just secure but dependable at scale.
How may AI shape the fintech industry? Do you see the changes happening at a rapid pace?
In fintech, the most important impact of AI is not what users see, but what they no longer notice.
Systems that work quietly, respond faster, and remain dependable at scale are increasingly powered by AI running in the background.
In payments, AI supports real-time fraud detection, predictive system monitoring, and smarter transaction routing, helping platforms operate reliably in high-volume environments like India.
At its best, AI works as a support layer that handles complexity behind the scenes, allowing human teams to focus on judgment, accountability, and customer understanding.
While technology can enhance speed and efficiency, trust in financial services remains built through human oversight and intervention, where it matters most.
AI is also influencing how financial services are experienced. By understanding patterns and context, platforms can simplify journeys, personalise interactions, and reduce friction, making financial tools easier to navigate.
The pace of change is fast. Capabilities that once took years are now being adopted far more quickly. This makes responsible implementation essential.
As AI becomes more deeply embedded in fintech, transparency, data privacy, and fairness must remain central.
Over time, AI will move from being a differentiator to a foundational capability that strengthens systems while keeping people at the centre.
What are the key challenges the fintech industry is witnessing now?
As fintech adoption scales across the country, a natural outcome for the ecosystem is that digital systems are supported by dependable on-ground execution.
As usage spreads across towns of all sizes, expectations extend beyond technology to timely human support.
When a merchant in a small town faces an issue like a QR not working, having someone available to resolve it quickly becomes part of how the system is designed to function.
At the same time, fintechs operate at very high transaction volumes where efficiency, reliability, and cost discipline become increasingly important.
This makes continued investment in technology, security, uptime, and customer support an inherent part of building services that remain affordable and accessible at scale.
Regulation has played a crucial role in fostering trust and stability throughout the ecosystem.
Consistency in regulatory processes helps innovation and compliance move forward together.
Technology and AI have significantly strengthened fintech operations, particularly in terms of monitoring and reliability.
As these tools become more embedded, human judgment and accountability continue to play an important role.
AI can enhance speed and efficiency, while trust is reinforced when users know there is understanding and responsibility on the other side.
Ultimately, the next phase of fintech growth will be shaped not just by access or scale, but by how reliably services work on the ground and how confidently people are supported when they need help.
Disclaimer: This story is for educational purposes only. The views and recommendations expressed are those of the expert, not Mint. We advise investors to consult with certified experts before making any investment decisions, as market conditions can change rapidly and circumstances may vary.