The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has been operating the Regulatory Sandbox (RS) framework since 2019, as part of which four thematic cohorts have been announced and completed till date. Based on the experience gained and feedback received from stakeholders, an ‘On Tap’ application facility for themes of closed cohorts was announced in October 2021.

Governor, Reserve Bank of India today held an interaction with non-bank Payment System Operators and FinTechs along with their associations/SROs. The interaction was a part of the Reserve Bank's series of engagements with the Payments and Fintech ecosystem. The interaction was also attended by Deputy Governors Shri M. Rajeshwar Rao, Shri T. Rabi Sankar and Shri Swaminathan J., along with Executive Directors-in-Charge of Payments, Fintech and Regulation.

Under the ‘On Tap’ application facility for the theme ‘Retail Payments’ of the Regulatory Sandbox (RS), Exto India Technologies Pvt. Ltd. was selected for the Test Phase.

The Reserve Bank had launched the third edition of its global hackathon - “HaRBInger – Innovation for Transformation” with the themes ‘Zero Financial Frauds’ and ‘Being Divyang Friendly’ covering four problem statements (Press Release dated June 07, 2024).

As part of the Statement on Developmental and Regulatory Policies released along with the Monetary Policy Statement dated December 06, 2024, the Reserve Bank of India had announced the setting up of a committee to develop a Framework for Responsible and Ethical Enablement of Artificial Intelligence (FREE-AI) in the Financial Sector.

The Reserve Bank had issued the 'Framework for Self-Regulatory Organisation(s) in the FinTech Sector' (Framework) and invited applications for recognition as Self-Regulatory Organisation in the FinTech Sector (SRO-FT). 2. Three applications for recognition as SRO-FT have been received. Each application was examined against the relevant requirements under the framework. 3. It has been decided to recognise the Fintech Association for Consumer Empowerment (FACE) as an SRO-FT.  Of the remaining two applications, one application has been returned with a provision for resubmission after meeting certain requirements. The third application is under examination.

The Reserve Bank had announced opening of the Fifth Cohort (Theme Neutral) under Regulatory Sandbox vide Press release dated October 27, 2023. 2. The Reserve Bank received twenty-two applications of which five have been selected for the ‘Test Phase’. The entities, as per details below, shall commence testing of their solutions from August 2024:

Reserve Bank had launched its third global hackathon – ‘HaRBInger 2024 – Innovation for Transformation’ with two themes of ‘Zero Financial Frauds’ and ‘Being Divyang Friendly’ which was communicated vide Press Release dated June 7, 2024. Keeping in view the requests received, it has been decided to extend the timeline for registration and submission of applications up to July 31, 2024.

In the Fourth Cohort of the Regulatory Sandbox (RS) with ‘Prevention and Mitigation of Financial Frauds’ as its theme, six entities were to commence testing of their products which was communicated vide Press Release dated January 05, 2023.

Reserve Bank is organising its third global hackathon – ‘HaRBInger 2024 – Innovation for Transformation’. The Hackathon invites participants to develop solutions using technology and innovative approaches under the following themes and problem statements: