The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) will introduce its ‘Unified Lending Interface’ (ULI) technology platform across the nation, RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das announced on August 26.
Introduced as a pilot project last year, the platform aims to provide “frictionless credit” and will soon be available nationwide.
Speaking at the Global Conference on Digital Public Infrastructure and Emerging Technologies in Bengaluru, Shaktikanta Das said, “Just like UPI transformed the payments ecosystem, we expect that ULI will play a similar role in transforming the lending space in India. The ‘new trinity’ of JAM-UPI-ULI will be a revolutionary step forward in India's digital infrastructure journey,” as reported by ANI.
The ULI platform is designed to streamline and simplify the credit appraisal process, particularly for small and rural borrowers. By enabling the seamless and consent-based flow of digital information—including land records from various states—between data service providers and lenders, the platform significantly reduces the time required for credit approvals.
Shaktikanta Das explained that the ULI architecture features common and standardised APIs, enabling a ‘plug-and-play approach. This design reduces the complexity of integrating multiple technical systems, allowing borrowers to benefit from quicker access to credit with minimal documentation.
“By digitising access to both financial and non-financial data that traditionally existed in separate silos, ULI is expected to address the substantial unmet demand for credit across various sectors, particularly for agricultural and MSME borrowers,” Das said, as quoted by ANI.
He also highlighted the success of the Unified Payment Interface (UPI), noting, "The current ecosystem of digital payments in India offers a bouquet of simple, safe, and secure options for instant or quick transfer of funds, both large and small value, for businesses and individuals,” as quoted by ANI.
Governor Das emphasised the RBI's ongoing efforts to secure and strengthen the financial system. “We are constantly working on devising policies, approaches, systems, and platforms that will make our financial sector stronger, nimble, and customer-centric,” he stated, as quoted by ANI.
