Top officials at GFF 2025 highlighted MSMEs’ role in generating over 120 million jobs and 30% of India's GDP. Discussions focused on simplifying capital access, leveraging UPI-like highway tech, and India Post's export logistics for rural businesses.
The 'MSMEs Unlocking Growth for India’s Next Economic Milestone' panel at the Global Fintech Fest (GFF) 2025 brought together key stakeholders who emphasized that Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) are the "bedrock of our economy". MSMEs contribute nearly 30% to India's GDP and provide over 120 to 140 million jobs.
The panelists, including Kaustubh Dhavse, Chief Advisor to the CM; Mudit Agarwal, CEO at Indian Highways Management Company; and Vivek Kumar Daksh, Deputy Director General at the Department of Post, stressed that simplifying access to capital and easing business complexities remain crucial challenges for the sector. The Chief Minister is expected to make an announcement later in the day regarding access to capital for MSMEs.
Mudit Agarwal detailed how MSMEs are driving "cutting-edge" technology in India's highway infrastructure. The FastTag system now has over 6 crore active users, and the focus is shifting towards barrier-less tolling, where vehicles can flow at high velocity while transactions are completed in milliseconds using sophisticated technologies like computer vision, neural networks, and OCR. He suggested that the AI technology developed by Indian MSMEs for managing Indian roads could become a valuable export to other countries, similar to UPI.
Highlighting that MSMEs are responsible for more than 45% of India's exports, Vivek Kumar Daksh explained how the Department of Post is leveraging its massive network of 1,65,000 post offices (over 90% in rural areas) to support export growth. India Post has established over 1,000 Dak Ghar Kendras to assist rural exporters with packaging, generating dynamic QR codes, and electronic customs clearance for global delivery. Furthermore, the India Post Payment Bank (IPPB) now has over 11 crore accounts, with most opened at the customer's doorstep, significantly changing rural financial inclusion.
Kaustubh Dhavse, noting the government's approach of driving investment top-down, stated that Maharashtra has generated investment interests worth 25.5 lakh crores from January to September. He cited the example of Toyota's 30,000 crore EV plant in Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar (erstwhile Aurangabad), which attracted 30 ancillary SMEs and MSMEs, demonstrating how large projects fuel opportunities for smaller industries. The panelists agreed that a "regimented approach" is now needed to apply the same focus that delivered large infrastructure projects to catalyze MSME growth.