India's Department of Financial Services (DFS) and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) have taken a significant step towards revolutionizing how people access loans. Senior leaders met in New Delhi to accelerate the scaling up of the Unified Lending Interface (ULI), a key national project designed to make borrowing simpler and more accessible for everyone.
Shri M. Nagaraju, Secretary of the DFS, and Shri T. Rabi Sankar, Deputy Governor of the RBI, jointly led the high-level meeting. They brought together top officials from multiple Indian government ministries, state governments, the RBI, and the Reserve Bank Innovation Hub. 
India ULI Digital Lending Push for Financial Inclusion


ULI: A New Foundation for Digital Lending

Secretary Nagaraju clearly outlined the ULI's ambitious purpose. He described it as India's next major Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI), specifically built for the lending sector. "Just as UPI transformed digital payments, the ULI aims to completely reshape credit delivery," he stated. The goal is to integrate technology, data, and policy rules onto one smooth platform.
This integration is crucial. Nagaraju highlighted the vast amount of reliable, high-value data held by central and state governments. When lenders can securely access and use this information effectively, it powers smarter, faster, and more inclusive lending decisions. This is especially important for people and small businesses who currently struggle to get loans. The ULI aims to break down barriers, making "smooth credit access for every Indian" a reality, supporting the government's broader goals of digital empowerment and financial inclusion.
He also stressed the importance of aligning various existing lending initiatives with the ULI. While these separate programs can keep their unique identities, connecting them through the ULI will create a stronger, unified national lending system, maximizing their combined impact.

ULI: Poised to Surpass UPI's Impact?

Deputy Governor Shri T. Rabi Sankar reinforced the RBI's commitment to fostering innovation within the country's credit system. He thanked the DFS for organizing the meeting and urged all participants – central ministries, state governments, and agencies – to view it as the start of an active, two-way partnership.
"Everyone needs to proactively recognize the ULI's potential as a truly transformative public digital platform," Sankar emphasized. He called for stakeholders to contribute energetically by integrating as many relevant datasets as possible into the ULI framework. "By unlocking this full potential," he suggested, "the ULI could even surpass the massive transformative impact UPI had on payments."

Concrete Steps Agreed Upon

The meeting concluded with strong agreement on specific actions to drive the ULI forward:
  • Integrate Government Data: Central government ministries and state governments will work to digitally connect their high-value datasets with the ULI platform.
  • Appoint Coordinators: Each stakeholder group will nominate dedicated nodal officers to speed up the process of linking government data to the ULI.
  • Digitize Land Records: State governments will focus special efforts on digitizing land and property records and connecting them to the ULI, a critical step for many types of loans.
  • Build a Unified System: Other lending initiatives across the country will align with the ULI, using it as the central anchor point to create a single, cohesive national credit delivery ecosystem.

The Road Ahead for Inclusive Credit

The high-level commitment from India's top financial authorities and state governments signals a major push for the Unified Lending Interface. By leveraging trusted government data through this shared digital infrastructure, the ULI promises to make credit decisions faster, fairer, and far more accessible. If successfully implemented, it could fundamentally change how millions of Indians and small businesses secure financing, driving significant progress in financial inclusion and economic growth. The focus now shifts to the crucial work of integrating data and aligning systems to turn this ambitious vision into reality.