AI, Quantum Trust and Digital Payments Lead Discussions at Global FinTech Fest 2026

Mumbai, September 7 (Reuters) – Prime Minister Narendra Modi will officially open the Global FinTech Fest (GFF) 2026 in Mumbai on Tuesday, marking the start of a four‑day conference that runs until September 11. The festival, now in its seventh edition, convenes a broad cross‑section of policy makers, regulatory bodies, banks, fintech firms, tech specialists, investors and academic researchers.

The central theme for GFF 2026 – "Potential to Impact: Agentic AI, Tokenisation, Quantum‑Trusted, Connected, Global Systems for Inclusive Finance" – signals a deep focus on artificial intelligence, programmable finance, quantum‑trusted architectures, tokenisation and the evolving ecosystem of digital payments.

A government briefing released on Monday highlighted that the festival is designed to bring together policy, regulation, technology, capital and industry on a single stage, exploring how agentic AI and related advanced technologies can build more reliable, inclusive and high‑impact financial solutions for citizens, enterprises and economies.

India’s reputation as a digital‑payments pioneer—underpinned by UPI, extensive public digital infrastructure and a thriving fintech sector—will be examined, with sessions aimed at charting pathways to elevate these achievements further.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has recently described Mumbai as both India’s financial and fintech capital. He emphasised the state’s leading role in startups, venture capital funding and the creation of unicorns, especially in the fintech space. With over 60% of the nation’s data‑centre capacity located in Maharashtra, the region offers a robust backbone for expanding digital financial services.

The state government has rolled out facilitative measures such as plug‑and‑play innovation parks, single‑window clearances and accelerated land allocation to accelerate growth in the sector. Additional programmes, including an AI Innovation Park, a Cybersecurity Centre and enhanced digital public infrastructure, are being pursued to connect finance with next‑generation technologies.

According to industry sources, the Global FinTech Fest 2026 will reinforce India's position as a leader in digital finance while unlocking new global partnerships and investment avenues in AI, quantum computing and tokenisation.