PH signs MOU with Indian Gov’t to enhance cooperation in FinTech

Finance Secretary Benjamin E. Diokno and Ambassador of India to the Philippines Shambhu Santha Kumaran signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on June 19, 2023 at the Department of Finance (DOF) office in Manila to enhance cooperation between the Philippines and India in the field of Financial Technology (FinTech).

“Today’s event marks an important milestone in the bilateral relations of India and the Philippines—just in time for the upcoming 5th Philippines-India Joint Commission on Bilateral Cooperation set to take place in New Delhi, India a few days from now,” Secretary Diokno said.

The MOU directs the constitution of a Joint Working Group (JWG) on FinTech with the Government of the Republic of India (GOI)’s Department of Economic Affairs (DEA), Ministry of Finance.

The creation of a JWG is expected to facilitate inter-governmental discussions on 1) the exchange of best practices to improve policies and regulatory connection, 2) promote cooperation in the development of FinTech solutions for business or financial sectors, and 3) develop international standards by encouraging the creation of an international version of Application Programming Interfaces (API).

“On the one hand, India is a rising economic powerhouse, with a forte in digital technology. On the other, the Philippines hosts a young and tech-savvy talent pool that can provide the intellectual capital needed to succeed in the digital economy. Clearly, the possibilities between our two economies are boundless,” Secretary Diokno said.

“In India, for the past seven years, we have seen an exponential growth in digital payments. Currently we are at the level of a hundred billion digital payments a year, with the flagship UPI itself – unified payments interface – itself becoming one of the primary drivers of a cashless, digitalized economy,” Ambassador Kumaran said in his remarks.

The JWG will be co-chaired by the DOF and the DEA. Members from the Philippine government include the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA), Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), Department of Information and Communication Technology (DICT), Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC),