Speeches & Media Interactions

On behalf of the Reserve Bank of India, I am delighted to welcome Mr. Agustin Carstens, General Manager of the Bank for International Settlements to deliver the C. D. Deshmukh Memorial lecture, the seventeenth in the series. We are also honored to have Smt. and Shri Atul Deshmukh from late Shri C. D. Deshmukh’s family. A hearty welcome to all the distinguished invitees of the Reserve Bank. 2. At the outset, I would like to say a few words about Shri C. D. Deshmukh to

Thank you for inviting me to this forum. I intend to cover some of the global risks and policy challenges from the perspective of emerging market economies (EMEs). We are aware that most EMEs have emerged more resilient than before from a turbulent 2018. For the greater part of 2018, the EMEs faced a wave of global spillover risks leading to capital outflows, currency and asset price volatility and tightened financial conditions. These developments posed risks to grow

I am extremely happy to participate in NITI Aayog’s FinTech Conclave 2019 and share my thoughts on the technological revolution that is shaping the future of finance. I am particularly thankful to Shri Amitabh Kant, CEO of NITI Aayog for having invited me to such an august gathering. As I understand, this Conclave is woven around the theme of Indian FinTech ecosystem as well as steps required to help achieve the potential that the sector offers towards growth, employm

I am honoured to be invited for the launch of the book "Indian Fiscal Federalism" authored by Dr. Y.V. Reddy and Shri G.R. Reddy. This is the latest in a prolific body of work that draws from Dr. Reddy’s hands-on experience with the Indian economy and public policy. These insightful expositions are interwoven with glimpses of Dr. Reddy’s professional life and his 'insider' views. 2. As Governor of the Reserve Bank of India during 2003-2008, after his stint as Deputy G

I am very happy to participate in the 9th edition of Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit. It is indeed a pleasure to be here and share my thoughts on various contours of the Indian economy. I thank the organisers of this event, namely the Government of Gujarat, National Investment and Infrastructure Fund and the Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance, Government of India for inviting me to this Roundtable. 2. As this august audience would know, India in recent

‘He is most free from danger, who even when safe, is on his guard.’ - Publilius Syrus (1st Century B.C.)

It is an accepted norm of organising human societies that with the right to liberty comes good governance, the latter being designed around laws (formal governance) or norms (informal governance) restricting excessive exertions of the right to liberty: where individual actions are deemed to create adverse spillovers (‘negative externalities’) on the rest of the society, laws or norms – backed by an enforcement machinery – draw a line as to what is acceptable human behaviour. Governance could be for the society as a whole or an individual firm or entity or a group of entities (e.g., the public sector). An important term we all come across in our functioning, especially in the public sector, is Vigilance, which is the essence of what all of you are attempting to achieve at the Central Vigilance Commission, established in 1964 by the Government of India, to address corruption in the government sector.

It is a pleasure to be with you all and share with you my thoughts on some recent developments that are expected to have transformative implications for our country. In particular, I wish to draw your attention to some major initiatives in gathering and analysing better credit data that can potentially have a huge impact in creating a financially healthy India. It is a known fact that a large part of the Indian economy is informal. This year’s Economic Survey has give

1. Shri Mahapatra, Chairman, National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), Shri Nandan Nilekani, Shri Dilip Asbe, Managing Director (MD) and Chief Executive Officer (CEO), NPCI, bankers and distinguished guests, it gives me immense pleasure to be in your midst as we launch a new, enhanced version of the Unified Payments Interface (UPI). I was especially moved by Nandan’s kind words for the RBI’s contribution in recent years in the area of digital payments. It would be remiss of us if we don’t acknowledge the strong foundations laid down by those who preceded us; it is, in part, because of their work that we have been able to make rapid progress.

2. Payment and Settlement Systems are at the heart of a modern economy. Recognising this, the Reserve Bank has been, over the years, initiating measures that have resulted in the payment systems in India gaining international recognition. In introducing: (i) second factor authentication; (ii) a unified payments structure; and (iii) the Bharat Quick Response

1. The ‘Class of 2018’ and their parents, guests and students, Lord Meghnad Desai, Chairman of the Meghnad Desai Academy of Economics, and the academic fraternity of the Academy, I am deeply honoured to be invited to the convocation ceremony. It reminds me fondly of my graduation ceremony three decades back.

2. Although his enormous standing and body of work is well known, let me say a few words about Lord Meghnad Desai, the Academy’s Chairman, Professor Emeritus at the London School of Economics, a renowned academic and a prominent global public figure. His contributions to the field of economics and education, and particularly his commitment to teaching at the London School of Economics, are the stuff of legend. He has also been an enlightened institution builder, a shining example of which is the Centre for the Study of Global Governance that he established in 1992. Lord Desai has written extensively, covering international political economy, Marxian economics, monetary economics, economic history and globalisation (as an aside, Lord Desai’s book ‘Testing Monetarism’ was required reading for macro courses in the United Kingdom in the 1980s). He has also worked extensively on issues relating to the Indian polity and has also been a sagacious influence in the political life of the UK. In recognition of thes

Shri B. Mahapatra, Chairman, NPCI, Shri Dilip Asbe, MD, NPCI, distinguished guests, fellow bankers, captains of the industry and the Honourable members of the Jury – it gives me great pleasure to be amidst you all as NPCI today recognises the significant work done by the innovators in payment systems of the country. Let me begin with a quote by Robin Sharma, the motivational speaker, who says ‘Small daily improvements over time lead to stunning results’. No one can di

It is indeed a pleasure to be here this morning. Let me welcome our guests of honour from the seven other SAARC countries; especially Mr. Arjun Mahendran in his capacity as the present SAARCFINANCE Chair as also Mr. Fazle Kabir, the Bangladesh Bank Governor and Mr. Dasho Penjore, Governor Royal Monetary Authority of Bhutan who will be attending the SAARCFINANCE event for the first time. I welcome our distinguished guests, including our invitees from the IMF and the BI

Shri M.V.Nair, Chairman, CIBIL; Ms. Arundhati Bhattacharya, Chairman, SBI; Shri T.M. Bhasin, Chairman, IBA; Shri Arun Thukral, Managing Director, CIBIL; delegates to the Conference; ladies and gentlemen! It is a pleasure for me to be present here this morning to deliver the keynote address at the Seventh Annual CIBIL TransUnion Credit Information Conference. Background 2. Consequent to the recommendations of the ‘Working Group to explore the possibilities of setting u

I am indeed indebted to the organizers, Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore for providing me this opportunity to share my thoughts on an issue, which has the potential to alter the global financial landscape in the years to come. 2. Global financial crisis and its aftermath have renewed the debates pertaining to functioning of international monetary system (IMS) and the need for multi-currency system. Is there a viable alternative fo

I am pleased to visit Lalpur Karauta village today and meet the people here. 2. I have come here from the Reserve Bank of India, Mumbai. The Reserve Bank also has an office in Lucknow and my colleagues from there have also accompanied me today. On this occasion, along with Bank of India and other banks, your member of parliament Shri P.L.Punia and senior officers of the Uttar Pradesh state government are also present. 3. You must be thi

Mr. Hiroyuki Obata, Deputy Governor, DICJ, Japan, Mr. Carlos Isoard, Secretary General, IADI, Switzerland, Mr. Jerzy Pruski, President, BGF, Poland, Mr. Fred S. Carns, Director, FDIC, USA, Mr. G. Gopalakrishna, Executive Director, RBI, distinguished delegates, ladies and gentlemen. At the outset, on behalf of RBI, I extend a hearty welcome to all of you to India and especially to this fascinating state of Rajasthan. We thank IADI for agreeing to hold this conference j

1. Mr. Abdul Qadeer Fitrat, Governor, Central Bank of Afghanistan, Mr. Arun Maira, Member, Planning Commission, Mr. R. Gopalan, Secretary, Department of Financial Services, Mrs. Kiran Dhingra, Secretary, Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation, Mr. Kamran Shehzad, Deputy Governor, State Bank of Pakistan, Mr. S. Sridhar, Chairman and Managing Director, National Housing Bank, Mr. Paolo Martelli, Director, South Asia, International Finance Corporation, Mr. R.V.

Ladies and Gentlemen, I am truly honoured to deliver the Fedbank Hormis Memorial Foundation commemorative lecture. The illustrious list of the previous years’ speakers indicates the kind of significance this commemorative lecture has acquired over the years. The late Shri K.P.Hormis, founder of Federal Bank, was a visionary and left behind an institutional set up in the form of Federal Bank which has been doing yeoman service for well over seventy five years. The Fedb

Let me at the outset thank the Chairman and other Executives of the National Co-operative Agricultural & Rural Development Banks’ Federation Ltd. for having invited me here today. The Federation has played a very important role in providing the members a forum for joint consultations and inputs for policy formulation since its inception in 1960. It has also been instrumental in facilitating a series of initiatives for beefing up the co-operative structure by bring