Indian fintechs unveil merchant AI, cross-border payments and SME credit tools at GFF 2026

BharatPe, PhonePe, NPCI, Jio Financial Services, Pine Labs and others introduced products spanning merchant AI, agentic commerce, cross-border payments, SME credit cards and retail lending at Global Fintech Festival Day 1.

— Source publishedThu, 10 Sept, 2026, 00:50 IST·First seen Thu, 10 Sept, 2026, 01:34 IST·Source Inc42 · Buzz

What happened

BharatPe · Indian fintechs launched merchant AI, cross-border payments, agentic commerce, SME credit cards and retail lending products at GFF 2026, expanding

Key facts

  • 60 live systems
  • 10 languages

Why this matters

Prioritize partnership or acquisition targets in merchant AI, SME credit underwriting and cross-border payment rails as ecosystem leaders expand into integrated commerce stacks.

What to watch

  • NPCI, RBI or government guidance on AI in financial services, customer consent, digital lending and cross-border payment compliance.
  • Reported merchant adoption, transaction volumes and repeat usage for AI-enabled payment or agentic-commerce features.
  • Growth in SME credit-card issuance, merchant cash advances, delinquency rates and loan-loss provisions.
  • Announcements of bank-fintech co-lending, credit-guarantee, FX or international remittance partnerships.
  • Pricing changes that bundle payment acceptance with software, credit or settlement services.
  • Evidence that large merchants adopt these products beyond pilots, especially in retail, travel, exports and marketplace selling.
  • Fintechs will bundle AI-led merchant support, payment acceptance, reconciliation and working-capital offers into tiered merchant subscriptions.
  • Large payment networks and banks will seek deeper access to transaction, GST, invoice and commerce-platform data to improve SME underwriting.
  • Cross-border payment providers will prioritize corridor launches, exporter onboarding, FX partnerships and compliance tooling.
  • Merchant acquirers and POS vendors will respond with AI sales assistants, automated settlement analytics and lending partnerships.
  • Banks may shift from direct SME acquisition toward balance-sheet partnerships where fintechs originate and service borrowers.

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