Mumbai | The UIDAI has launched a new face authentication software development kit (SDK) designed to simplify Aadhaar authentication for partner institutions and reduce longstanding geofencing restrictions that have limited its use for Indians travelling and living overseas, said Shri Neelkanth Mishra, Chairman, Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI), at the Global Fintech Fest (GFF) 2026, being held from September 8–11, at Jio World Centre, Mumbai.
GFF 2026 is organised by the Payments Council of India (PCI), the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) and the Fintech Convergence Council (FCC). The conference is supported by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY); the Department of Financial Services, Ministry of Finance; the New, Emerging and Strategic Technology (NEST) Division, Ministry of External Affairs; Niti Aayog; the Reserve Bank of India (RBI); the Securities and Exchanges Board of India (SEBI); the International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA); and the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA).
Addressing a session titled "Digital Identity and Beyond," moderated by Mr. Srinivas Jain, Executive President, SBI Funds, Shri Mishra explained that the new SDK will allow partner banks and businesses to run Aadhaar authentication locally on their own servers, rather than routing requests through UIDAI's central systems.
"The problem with removing geofencing is, then you are vulnerable," he said. "It's critical infrastructure. And of course, we see hundreds of attacks every day. We have safeguards."
He described a model where authentication runs on the bank's own server rather than UIDAI's central infrastructure, so the bank secures its own local process and the exposure doesn't pass back to UIDAI's systems.
This comes as Aadhaar authentication volumes climb sharply from seven crore transactions a day a few years ago to roughly 10 crores today with UIDAI preparing infrastructure to handle 25 to 30 crore daily authentications. Shri Mishra noted that more than 600 entities currently use the platform, with the Aadhaar app nearing 6 crore downloads.
On growing institutional adoption, he said, "Telangana police is now insisting that a lot of the verification they do requires the Aadhaar app itself, and that gets people to download the Aadhaar app."
On UIDAI's underlying philosophy, he added, "Aadhaar is only a database. We make sure that we are very good at what we do, but we also don't want any scoping. We must be good at having the identity data of 1.44 billion and provide it in a safe, secure, and trusted way. We would like to become the infrastructure that no one knows."
Speaking at the session, Mr. Jitendra Gupta, Founder and CEO, Jupiter, said, "I must admit that Aadhaar has been one of the biggest boons for the fintech industry and the value they create in terms of solving for customer experiences." He pointed out that Aadhar has reduced friction in customer onboarding and aided in digital first experiences.
About Payments Council of India (PCI)
The Payments Council of India (PCI) was formed under the aegis of the Internet and Mobile Association of India (PCI) in the year 2013 catering to the needs of the digital payment industry. The Council was formed inter-alia to represent the various non-banking payment industry players, and to address and help resolve various industry-level issues and barriers that require discussion and action.
The council works with its 220+ members, encompassing over 90% of the industry to promote payments industry growth and to support our national goals of 'Cashless Society' and ‘Growth of Financial Inclusion’ which is also the Vision Shared by the RBI and the Government of India. PCI represents the complete digital payments ecosystem of India through its various committees representing different sectors.
About National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI)
National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) is the umbrella entity responsible for operating retail payments and settlement systems in India. It is established by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and the Indian Banks’ Association (IBA). The Company is focused on bringing innovations in the retail payment systems by using technology for achieving greater efficiency in operations and widening the reach of payment systems. NPCI is committed to harnessing the transformative potential of deep tech, creating an ecosystem that fosters collaboration to work on breakthrough technologies. Underlining its commitment to service, NPCI has been incorporated as a “Not for Profit” Company to provide infrastructure to the entire Banking system in India for physical as well as electronic payment and settlement systems.
NPCI has made a profound impact on India's retail payment landscape, focusing on creating robust, efficient, and inclusive payment and settlement solutions. NPCI has been instrumental in introducing a range of products that have revolutionised retail payment systems. These include Unified Payments Interface (UPI), RuPay, National Automated Clearing House (NACH), Immediate Payment Service (IMPS), National Electronic Toll Collection (NETC), Aadhaar Enabled Payment System (AePS), e-RUPI and more. Each of these products has contributed significantly to enhance the efficiency and accessibility of payment systems in India, ultimately propelling financial inclusion.
NPCI has played a fundamental role in establishing the foundation for India’s rapidly growing digital payments ecosystem, projecting the country onto the global stage.
NPCI has four wholly owned subsidiaries – NPCI International Payments Limited (NIPL) and NPCI Bharat BillPay Limited (NBBL), NPCI BHIM Services Limited (NBSL) and NPCI Tech Solutions Limited (NTSL), established in pursuance of NPCI Board & RBI approval.
For more information visit: https://www.npci.org.in/
About Fintech Convergence Council (FCC)
Established in 2018, the Fintech Convergence Council (FCC) is an industry body representing the collective voice of fintech companies in India. Since its inception, the FCC has evolved into a leading platform with a diverse membership of over 280 fintech entities across key segments including digital lending, wealth, insurance, RegTech, and credit bureaus. The FCC’s core mission is to address sector-specific challenges and provide a unified platform for dialogue within the broader BFSI (Banking, Financial Services, and Insurance) ecosystem.
The council actively engages with regulators and policymakers to help shape progressive policy frameworks and promote a balanced approach to innovation and compliance. In addition to policy advocacy, the FCC also focuses on knowledge sharing, strengthening consumer education, and promoting responsible finance through awareness-building initiatives on customer protection, digital literacy, and best practices in fintech.
To learn more, please visit https://fintechcouncil.in
