I still remember speaking to Mr. A (yes, as journalists, we protect identities when people prefer to stay unnamed), the founder of an e-wallet company. His voice carried the weight of uncertainty. The Supreme Court ruling had affirmed Aadhaar’s constitutional validity but limited its use to welfare schemes and state subsidies. For fintech founders like Mr. A, who had built entire business models around seamless e-KYC, the judgment felt like hitting a wall.
When the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) issued a circular halting Aadhaar e-KYC, companies were left without a digital, paperless way to onboard customers. I chronicled their struggle — internal meetings, brainstorming sessions, and the frantic search for solutions. The industry was staring at a sharp rise in costs, with physical KYC verification estimated to burden companies with an additional ₹2,500 crore annually.
This pivotal moment in India’s fintech landscape sparked my shift from journalism to policy advocacy. I realised that telling these stories wasn’t enough — I wanted to help shape the narrative, influence policy, and bridge the gap between regulators and innovators.
Years later, when I led fintech policy efforts at NASSCOM, I carried these experiences with me. I knew the ground realities because I had reported them. I understood founders’ fears, the operational chaos, and the urgent need for a sustainable, tech-driven KYC framework. This insight helped me advocate for progressive solutions like video KYC, which eventually unlocked a more balanced, digital-first approach to customer verification.
My journey from journalist to advocate taught me that impactful change happens not just by observing the system but by stepping into it. And sometimes, the stories we write lead us to the tables where policies are made.