The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has appointed Senapathy (Kris) Gopalakrishnan, co-founder and former co-Chairman, Infosys, as the first Chairperson of the Reserve Bank Innovation Hub (RBIH).
The central bank, in its Statement on Developmental and Regulatory Policies issued on August 6, 2020, had announced that it would set up an Innovation Hub to promote innovation across the financial sector by leveraging on technology and creating an environment which would facilitate and foster innovation.
Also read: RBI to set up innovation hub
RBIH will be guided and managed by a Governing Council (GC) led by a Chairperson
Besides Gopalakrishnan, RBIH’s Governing Council will have nine other members including a CEO (to be appointed); Ashok Jhunjhunwala, Institute Professor, IIT, Madras; H. Krishnamurthy, Principal Research Scientist, IISc., Bengaluru; Gopal Srinivasan, CMD, TVS Capital Funds; A.P. Hota, Former CEO, National Payments Corporation of India.
The RBI, in a statement, said the RBIH would create an eco-system that would focus on promoting access to financial services and products. This will also promote financial inclusion.
The Hub will collaborate with financial sector institutions, technology industry and academic institutions and coordinate efforts for exchange of ideas and development of prototypes related to financial innovations.
The central bank said RBIH would develop internal infrastructure to promote fintech research and facilitate engagement with innovators and start-ups.