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| Roundtable Discusses Role of Bike Taxis in India's Mobility Landscape |
 Participants at the Roundtable on pivotal role of bike taxis in India's mobility landscape |
IAMAI in partnership with Uber India and KPMG, organised a policy roundtable on the pivotal role of bike taxis in India's mobility landscape, on May 9, 2024. Held in New Delhi, the roundtable featured industry experts, academics, and think tanks discussing sustainable urban development aligned with SDG 11 goals. They explored policy regulations and the growth of bike taxis, emphasising their smaller carbon footprint and role in promoting fuel-efficient transportation. The discussions highlighted the rise of app-based platforms in the gig economy, the importance of last-mile connectivity, and the evolving regulatory framework for bike taxis in India.
Aishwarya Raman, Executive Director, OMI Foundation; Revathy Pradeep, Researcher, ICCT; Amit Das, CEO, Electric-one; Ashish Verma, Professor and Convenor, IST Lab, IISc Bengaluru; Kaushal Mahan, VP-Public Policy, Chase India; Parth Shah, Founder/President, Centre for Civil Society; Rupa Nandy, Head of India, International Association of Public Transport; Sharif Qamar, Associate Director, Transport and Urban Governance, The Energy and Resources Institute; Sourav Dhar, Programme Lead of Mobility, CEEW; Sumeet Swarup, Director, Centre for the Digital Future; Deepty Jain, Assistant Professor, IIT Delhi; Raghavan Viswanathan, Associate Partner – Deal Advisory, KPMG; Dr. Niti Bhasin, Professor, Delhi School of Economics; Dr. Dhanya MB, Fellow, VV Giri National Labour Institute; Gaurav Sharda, Head of Uber Moto, India and South Asia, Uber India, and Roopal Suhag, Sr. Director, DGA - Albright Stonebridge Group participated in the discussions.
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Submission on Draft Digital Competition Bill Underlines Problems of Ex-ante Regulation of Digital Markets
The Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) made a submission to the Ministry of Corporate Affairs on the Draft Digital Competition Bill, 2024. In its submission, IAMAI made the following points:
A) Implementing a parallel ex-ante competition regulation only to regulate digital markets puts companies in such markets under dual legislations, while other markets will continue to be governed only by the Competition Act.
B) The criteria for designating enterprises as Systemically Significant Digital Enterprises (SSDEs) are subjective, all-encompassing, and self-contradictory, and could potentially cover the entirety of India's digital sector.
C) Ex-ante regulations in Europe under the Digital Markets Act have not been able to resolve the specific problem of app developers being charged excessive service fees by online mobile application stores.
D) In India, many tech start-ups also face the issue of excessive service fees charged by online mobile application stores on in-app purchases. However, as the CCI has not been able to adequately resolve this issue, there is a need for suitably amending existing laws, including the current Competition Act, to further empower the CCI and resolve this issue in a timely manner.
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| IAMAI Urges Delhi Govt to Extend Aggregators' Fleet Declaration |
| IAMAI made a submission to the Government of Delhi on the Delhi Motor Vehicle Aggregator and Delivery Service Provider Scheme, 2023 (‘Scheme'). Citing a low response rate from gig workers, IAMAI requested the Government for an extension of at least two months on the deadline for aggregators to declare their existing fleet to ensure all required details are collected. The association also requested a phased electric vehicle transition plan for bike taxis, as has been done for other modes of transportation within the scheme. Additionally, IAMAI urged the Delhi Government to permit aggregators to declare low-speed electric two-wheelers as part of the conversion mandates in the Scheme as their high-speed counterparts have a restricted supply and are much costlier, and therefore out of reach for most gig workers. |
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IAMAI Requests Punjab Govt to Align Aggregation of Non-Transport Vehicles with Central Govt's MVA Guidelines
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IAMAI made a submission to the State Transport Commissioner, Government of Punjab on the Draft Punjab Motor Vehicle Aggregator Rules, 2023 (Draft Rules). The submission urged the Government of Punjab to provide for the aggregation of non-transport vehicles, and carpooling and bike-pooling in line with the Motor Vehicle Aggregator Guidelines (MVA Guidelines) released by the Central Government. Noting the absence of provisions enabling dynamic pricing, the association underscored the role of dynamic pricing in addressing driver availability and rider demand at a hyperlocal level in real time and requested the Punjab Government to include dynamic pricing in the Draft Rules.
IAMAI made a submission to the State Transport Commissioner, Government of Punjab on the Draft Punjab Motor Vehicle Aggregator Rules, 2023 (Draft Rules). The submission urged the Government of Punjab to provide for the aggregation of non-transport vehicles, and carpooling and bike-pooling in line with the Motor Vehicle Aggregator Guidelines (MVA Guidelines) released by the Central Government. Noting the absence of provisions enabling dynamic pricing, the association underscored the role of dynamic pricing in addressing driver availability and rider demand at a hyperlocal level in real time and requested the Punjab Government to include dynamic pricing in the Draft Rules.
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| Counter Comments on National Broadcasting Policy Highlights Differences Between OTT Platforms & Broadcasting Networks |
IAMAI submitted its counter comments on the National Broadcasting Policy highlighting the inherent differences between OTT platforms and Broadcasting Networks. It emphasised that OTT platforms were sufficiently regulated under the part III of the IT Rules, 2021.
On similar lines, the IAMAI Secretariat highlighted that the NBP should acknowledge the distinction between the different services and that OTT platforms were not broadcasting networks at an Open House Discussion organised by TRAI on the National Broadcasting Policy (NBP) on May 15, 2024. It was also suggested that NBP must clarify the distinction between content and carriage.
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| MIB Discusses Draft Broadcasting Bill with Relevant Industry Bodies |
| The IAMAI Secretariat attended a meeting convened by the Secretary, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, on May 29, 2024, to discuss the issues of the stakeholders with the Draft Broadcasting Services (Regulation) Bill, 2023. During the meeting, the MIB discussed the issues such as composition of CEC, definition clauses, and replicating the term "OCCP", and the response of the MIB to each of these issues. It was requested that the same may be shared with all the relevant stakeholders through the respective industry bodies present. Upon receiving the response of the stakeholders, the Secretary suggested that another meeting be organised with the stakeholders before finalisation of the Draft.
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| Card Networks Discuss Guest Checkout for Travel Payments with RBI |
| The Payments Council of India (PCI) facilitated discussions, on May 15, 2024, between card networks and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on guest checkout for travel payments. Networks briefed the RBI on the progress of the development of a guest checkout solution for travel payments. The regulator will share the feedback on the proposed payment flows submitted by the networks. |
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| International Remittance and Trade Committee Highlights Challenges of RBI's PA-CB Guidelines |
| The International Remittance and Trade Committee had discussions with Niti Aayog, the Department of Economic Affairs (Ministry of Finance), and the Ministry of MSME, during which the committee presented challenges regarding RBI's recently released Payment Aggregator - Cross Border (PA-CB) guidelines. Members of the committee highlighted the potential business disruptions for Indian online exporters due to the regulations and requested stakeholder support to mitigate these risks. |
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| Payment Aggregators Discuss Guidelines with RBI |
| The PCI hosted an industry discussion between payment aggregators and the RBI on Payment Aggregator Guidelines on May 22, 2024. Industry representatives highlighted key issues such KYC, merchant onboarding, and escrow accounts. |
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| Suggestions to RBI on Gold Loans |
| The Lending Committee, under the Fintech Convergence Council (FCC), made a representation to the RBI regarding the regulatory limitation on lending against different jewellery forms along with suggestions towards addressing the same. Following industry discussions, the committee collated the inputs on suggestions for the existing regulations to facilitate lending against gold coins, bars, and e-gold, thereby catering to evolving consumer preferences and fostering financial inclusion. |
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| Representation to NPCI on Streamlining the Mandate Functionality for UPI |
| The Lending Committee made a representation to the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), proposing recommendations on streamlining the mandate functionality for the Unified Payments Interface (UPI). The UPI has become a leading digital payment channel due to its cost-effectiveness, speed, and security. Certain challenges in UPI Mandates implementation create friction in the lending lifecycle. The representation identified a few of those challenges and recommended a few suggestions to minimize friction and ensure seamless execution of UPI Mandates for lending. |
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| Industry Representation to IRDAI on Insurance Literacy |
| On behalf of the Insurance Committee, the FCC made a representation to IRDAI underlining the lack of awareness around insurance and the resultant lack of accessibility of the insurance products to the country's population. Despite the growth in India's insurance market, many policyholders do not properly understand their insurance policies. To bridge this knowledge gap, the FCC recommended simplifying policy language by removing technical jargons, enhancing transparency by clearly stating exclusions, and implementing targeted educational initiatives such as workshops and online resources. These steps aim to foster a more informed consumer base, improving both customer satisfaction and industry growth. |
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| Industry Representation to RBI Proposing the Introduction of Self-V-CIP |
| The RegTech Committee at the FCC made a representation to the RBI proposing 'Limited or Self V-CIP' for low-risk products to address challenges in the Video Customer Identification Process (V-CIP), such as high operational costs, long waiting times, and poor internet connectivity. This approach involves a one-way video call without an officer from the regulated entities' end, thus reducing costs, eliminating waiting times, and working better in low-bandwidth areas. The representation points out that these recommendations are also expected to ensure authenticity and prevent fraud. It urged the RBI to consider this revision to improve efficiency and customer experience in the existing KYC processes. |
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| Meeting with DPIIT on Key Logistics Issues |
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IAMAI's Supply Chain and LogisticsTech Committee met with the Additional Secretary, Joint Secretaries, Director (Logistics) and other senior officials of the DPIIT to discuss key issues, including the skill gap within the logistics ecosystem, navigation challenges, categorization of warehousing by pollution control and electricity boards, and tackling fraudulent activities in the logistics industry. The DPIIT requested detailed submissions from IAMAI and recommended reaching out to specific state ministries to address these concerns effectively.
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| Roundtables on Personalization at Scale in Delhi & Bengaluru |
 Participants of the IAMAI-Salesforce Roundtable in Delhi |
IAMAI's Digital Advertising Committee, in collaboration with Salesforce, organised two consecutive roundtables on May 2 and May 9, 2024, in Delhi and Bengaluru to deliberate on "Personalization at Scale: Enhancing CX, Fostering Loyalty, and Boosting Revenue through Deep Insights". At both roundtables industry experts shared insights on enhancing customer experiences through digital banking, driven by data and advanced technologies like AI, ML and cloud analytics.
The Delhi roundtable was addressed by Abhinav Sinha, Co-founder, Eko; Dharmender Jhamb, Partner, Financial Services-Consulting, Grant Thornton Bharat LLP; Dominic Vijay, CTO, ART Housing Finance; Mithu Gupta, CMO Head of User experience, Intellect Design Arena; Pankaj Gupta, CEO, Spectrum Insurance; Pankaj Gupta, Founder and CEO, ACT21 Software; Ranjan Kant, Co-Founder and President, Arthmate; Rohit Garg, Head of Digital and Product, Hero Fincorp; S Anand, Founder and CEO, PaySprint, and Sitesh Srivastava, CIO & CTO, Alankit Group.
Experts who addressed the Bengaluru roundtable included Vaibhav Mehrotra, Senior Director And CTO Of Marketing, Cashfree Payments; Karanpreet Bindra, Group Chief Marketing Officer, Yubi; Meghna Suryakumar, Founder and CEO, Crediwatch; Raunak Dembla, Founding Membar, Decentro; Hitarth Saini, Head of Marketing, Freo Money; A.G Ramakrishna, Chief Product Officer, Card91; Amit Gupta, VP Marketing, Perfios; Koushik Kadidal, CDO, PayU; Ramanathan RV, Co-Founder, Hyperface; Sumit Sharma, Founder, Radian Finserv; Mayank Goyal, Founder & CEO, MoneyHOP; Naveen Budda, CoFounder, KarmaLifeAI, and Tarun Nazare, Founder, Neokred.
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| Roundtable on Navigating the Customer Engagement Landscape for Profitable Growth |
 Participants of The Mastermind Dialogue Roundtable in New Delhi |
IAMAI's Digital Advertising Committee, in collaboration with CleverTap, organised a roundtable on "Navigating the customer engagement landscape for profitable growth" as part of The Mastermind Dialogue Series, on May 9, 2024, in New Delhi. Participating experts shared their insights on key questions related to the broad topic of the roundtable such as, "How do you define engagement in your line of business?" "How does it relate to the growth projections of your P&L?" "What are the different cost factors you provision for when defining budgets and expenses in your annual plan?" and "How can you map out the customer journey to identify touchpoints where engagement can be enhanced for better profitability?"
Key speakers at the roundtable were Abhishek Sharma, Chief Product Officer, HT Digital Streams; Ved Agarwal, Chief Marketing Officer, Grip Invest; Manas J, Vice President - Product, Noise; Alekhya Chakrabarty, Vice President - Marketing and Growth, Unstop; Pankaj Soni, Vice President Marketing, Spinny; Nikhil Adhlakha, Head of Ecommerce, Ethos Watch Boutiques; Harish P, DGM - Digital Marketing, Amarujala.com; Ravneesh Dhaneshwar, Business Head - Product & Marketing, Alive Wellness Clinics, and Sameer Jain, Enterprise Sales, CleverTap.
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| Webinar on Common Tax Issues for FinTech Entities |
| The Payments Council of India (PCI) and the Fintech Convergence Council (FCC), in collaboration with PwC, organised a webinar on May 22, 2024, on the common tax issues for fintech. The session was conducted by Amit Rana and Nimish Bhatia, Partners, PwC. The session discussed some common direct and indirect tax issues pertaining to the Indian fintech ecosystem. The session concluded with a question-and-answer segment. Over 100 industry professionals participated in the webinar. |
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| Webinar on Digital Lending |
| The FCC, in collaboration with PwC, organised a webinar on May 27, 2024, to discuss the recent regulatory updates in the digital lending space covering FAQs on default loss guarantee in digital lending, aggregation of loan products from multiple lenders, fair practices code for lenders and the Key Facts Statement (KFS) for loans and advances.
The session covered discussed various aspects of the circular. It concluded with a question-and-answer segment. More than 140 industry professionals joined the webinar.
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