Global Fintech Fest: Sitharaman launches foreign currency settlement system at GIFT City, flags AI, fintech challenges

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday launched a foreign currency settlement system at Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT City), which will facilitate seamless transactions on real-time basis.

Currently foreign currency transactions usually get settled with a lag of 36 to 48 hours.

With this launch, the GIFT International Financial Services Centre (IFSC) joins a select group of global financial hubs like Hong Kong and Tokyo that have the infrastructure to locally settle foreign currency transactions, Sitharaman said.

Addressing the Global Fintech Fest 2025, Sitharaman said India wants to remain “on the fringes” when it comes to business and technology regulations.

"We'd like to remain in the fringes and watch. We like to remain in the fringes and help...we have to enable businesses and not interrupt in their progress," she said.

Urging responsible use of innovation, the minister cautioned against the misuse of digital tools. “We should refrain from weaponising technology,” she said.

Sitharaman said while artificial intelligence (AI) has transformed finance and governance, there are also darker sides to the technology.

"Even as AI opens extraordinary possibilities, we must confront its darker side. The same tools that power innovation can be weaponised for deception and for fraud. I'm not personalising it, but I can say, I have seen several deep fake videos of myself, being circulated online, manipulated to mislead citizens, distort facts," the finance minister said.

She also informed the gathering that the government saved ₹4.31 lakh crore due to Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT), and public funds now reach the people they are meant for and not ghost entities.