Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said the challenge for India’s fintech industry is to turn the possibilities opened up by agentic AI, tokenisation and quantum technologies into real-world impact, as he inaugurated the Global Fintech Fest 2026 in Mumbai.“Agentic AI, tokenisation, quantum — such technologies are opening new doors of possibility in the financial sector.
The challenge before us now is how to convert these possibilities into real impact,” Modi said.The theme of GFF 2026 is “Potential to Impact: Agentic AI | Tokenisation | Quantum: Trusted, Connected, Global Systems for Inclusive Finance.” The three technologies are expected to push financial services towards more autonomous, programmable and secure systems.Also Read: PM Modi hails India’s fintech story at Global Fintech Fest 2026 in Mumbai, calls UPI the big champion of India’s riseModi called on fintech companies to work together and set goals for the industry as these technologies move from experimentation to deployment.“For this, I want our fintech companies to work together and set some tasks for themselves,” he said.The Prime Minister outlined four priorities for the fintech industry, starting with cybersecurity.“We have to make cybersecurity in India top-notch,” Modi said, as financial services become increasingly dependent on digital infrastructure, data and AI-led systems.He also called on the fintech industry to develop its own ethical standards for data production.The third priority, he said, should be building a strong regulator-industry innovation ecosystem, with regulation keeping pace with changes in financial technology.Modi’s fourth suggestion was a Fintech Consumer Protection Index, which could give consumers a transparent way to compare companies on their protection standards.’Dreams are becoming bolder’Modi also said India’s fintech ecosystem was becoming younger, more energetic and more willing to take risks.“This is my third year at the Global Fintech Fest.
I see more young people than before, I feel more energy and the capacity to take risks is increasing. Dreams are becoming bolder,” he said.“This is why my confidence in the vision of a Viksit Bharat is becoming even stronger,” he added.The three technologies at the centre of this year’s GFF are being positioned as key building blocks for the next phase of financial services.Also Read: Human in, on or out of the loop: AI is reshaping insurance jobs, says Axis Max Life COOAgentic AI can allow financial systems to sense, decide and act in real time, with applications ranging from automating workflows and fraud prevention to regulatory oversight and personalised financial services.Tokenisation converts assets into programmable digital units.
It could enable fractional ownership, faster settlement and greater liquidity across capital markets and payments.Quantum technologies could bring changes to both computing and security in financial services, including through quantum-safe cryptography and more advanced risk optimisation.Modi said India was now ready to build on that digital transformation. “Digital India’s success story is now ready for a new chapter,” he said.GFF 2026 has participation from more than 70 countries, with over 700 speakers, 5,000 participating companies and 400 investors expected at the conference.
The event will also feature regulatory and policy dialogues, industry roundtables, startup showcases, workshops, hackathons and an exhibition of fintech innovations, with more than 10 industry reports also set to be launched.
