The industry leaders say that governments move in the Union Budget 2021 on the proposed 1500 crore fund for digital payments will go a long way in strengthening payment infrastructure and taking financial services to the last-mile. Below are the views of some of the top industry CXOs on Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announcements in the Budget 2021.
Sudarshan Lodha, Co-founder, Strata
Considering the challenging year the country has been through, I would like to congratulate the finance minister for putting up a bold budget focussed on growth. It is extremely encouraging to see that the budget bets big on the infrastructure industry to help kick-start the economy.
Divestment and monetisation of assets across the industry including airports, ports, railways and freight corridors is a big stride and will go a long way in making India Atmanirbhar in the real sense of the term. This will also offer a big impetus to fractional investment models in real-estate.
Instead of solely depending on the developers for the supply side, the industry can expect big government assets on the block thereby opening up the industry further to retail investors.
Considering infrastructure needs long term debt financing, a professionally managed Development Financial Institution will act as an enabler, while an Asset Reconstruction Company and Asset Management Company will usher in consolidation in the sector.
Additionally, Debt Financing of InVITs and REITs by Foreign Portfolio Investors will help boost much-needed liquidity in the sector, whereas reduction in taxes and measures for affordable housing will spur consumption and growth at the retail level.
The budget also offers a big boost to the startup sector. Besides the extension of a tax holiday, extended capital gains exemption for investment in start-ups by another year will help the sector attract more funds. This will encourage more entrepreneurs to join the bandwagon while also evading the cumbersome compliance procedure.
Ketan Doshi, MD, PayPoint India
Governments move on the proposed 1500 crores fund for digital payments is a welcome move and will go a long way in strengthening payment infrastructure in the country and taking financial services to the last-mile. We would wait to see the fine print of where this fund will be allocated.
Waiver of Tax audit for companies with turnover upto 10 crores and a cash expenditure of less than 5% will push Small businesses to move towards Digital payments.”
Rahul Raj, Founder & CEO at FloBiz
I would like to commend the government on presenting a comprehensive budget that aims to address some of the most important aspects of how we can build a resilient economy, especially in light of the global pandemic.
The budget was clearly pro-growth, pro-technology, pro-infrastructure and also had an earmarked place for improving healthcare in our country.
The initiatives announced will certainly aid economic recovery, whether that's through capital infusion, change in taxation norms, programs for promoting domestic manufacturing or development of relevant infrastructure – these will create large opportunities for the MSMEs and is a right step in the direction of building an “Aatmanirbhar Bharat”.
