Delighted to introduce the newest group company, Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) chairman Mukesh Ambani on 28 August, 2023 explained the basic mission of Jio Financial Services, which has been conceptualised to fill a critical gap in the financial services needs of a large section of the Indian economy, mainly in the informal and underserved sectors in rural, semi-urban, and urban areas.
In other words, JFS is born to accelerate the replication of India’s dazzling growth story in Bharat, he said at the Reliance AGM on Monday.
With JFS, the conglomerate aims to increase financial services penetration by transforming and modernising them with a digital-first approach that simplifies financial products, reduces cost of service, and expands reach to every citizen through easily accessible digital channels.
“JFS plans to democratise financial services for 1.42 billion Indians, giving them access to simple, affordable, innovative, and intuitive products and services,” he added.
Given this background, here the top highlights on Jio Financial Services from Mukesh Ambani’s speech at the 46th Reliance AGM:
# JFS has announced a joint venture with BlackRock to set up an asset management business that will provide simple investment solutions in India. BlackRock is the world’s largest AMC, managing assets worth over USD 11 trillion. The JV will synergise the respective strengths of JFS and BlackRock to deliver tech-enabled, affordable, and innovative investment solutions, the RIL Chairman said.
# In payments, JFS will consolidate its payments infrastructure with a ubiquitous offering for both consumers and
merchants, further driving digital payment adoption for India.
# JFS products will not just compete with current industry benchmarks but also explore new and upcoming features such as blockchain-based platforms and CBDC. “They will adhere to the highest standards of security, regulatory norms and ensure protection of customer transaction data at all times,” he said.
# The company is set to foray in the insurance space to offer simple, yet smart, Life, General, and Health insurance products through aseamless digital interface, potentially partnering with global players.
# Just like Jio and Retail, JFS too will prove to be an invaluable addition to the Reliance ecosystem, said Ambani while giving three major reasons that will guide ‘tremendous success of JFS over the next few years.
– JFS is betting big on the digital-first architecture of JFS to give an unmatched head start to reach millions of Indians.
– JFS has been infused with a strong capital foundation. Reliance has capitalised JFS with a net worth of ` 1,20,000 crore to create one of the world’s highest capitalised financial service platforms at inception.
– The company has a very strong board, led by K.V. Kamath. A highly motivated leadership team is being built with a combination of financial industry experts and young leaders, he said.
