RBI Unveils App To Provide Access To Economic, Financial Data

SUMMARY

The app, RBIDATA, comprises data source, unit of measurement, frequency and recent developments for better understanding

It also offers quick access to the database on the Indian economy portal and aims to serve the researchers, students, and the general public

RBI rolled out ‘bank.in’ for Indian banks to curb cybersecurity threats and malicious activities such as phishing, earlier this month

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has unveiled a mobile app which will offer access to more than 11,000 different series of economic data pertaining to the Indian economy.

The app, RBIDATA, comprises data source, unit of measurement, frequency and recent developments for better understanding, while also providing users the permission to download the statistics for analysis.

The central bank said in a statement that the app also offers quick access to the database on the Indian economy portal and aims to serve the researchers, students, and the general public.

This development comes at a time when the RBI is also taking various measures to combat financial fraud and improve security of transactions, aside from introducing initiatives for improved data access to the country.

For instance, the central bank rolled out an exclusive internet domain, ‘bank.in’, for Indian banks to curb cybersecurity threats and malicious activities such as phishing, earlier this month.

The RBI further aims to streamline financial services and enhance trust in digital banking and payment platforms by providing a secure and verified domain.

The Institute for Development and Research in Banking Technology (IDRBT) serves as the exclusive registrar, with registrations set to begin in April 2025.

In its last Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting on December 6, 2024, the central bank also introduced an AI/ML-powered model called MuleHunter.AI to detect mule bank accounts.

On the other hand, the Reserve Bank of India Innovation Hub (RBIH) partnered with digital lender Vivifi Finance to launch a pilot project aimed at providing unsecured loans to gig workers, such as cab-hailing app drivers, food delivery drivers, and other temporary workers, almost two months ago.

Meanwhile, RBI governor Shaktikanta Das launched the fintech repository, in May 2024, which unlocked access to all information related to the Indian fintech sector, including data related to various fintech startups as well as their activities, operations and technology use cases.