Nandan Nilekani’s digital public infrastructure legacy keeps ONDC in retail focus

A profile traces Nilekani’s role across Aadhaar, UPI and India Stack, positioning ONDC as the next interoperable digital-commerce layer aimed at helping smaller retailers compete with large marketplaces.

— Source publishedTue, 28 Jul, 2026, 07:15 IST·First seen Tue, 28 Jul, 2026, 07:44 IST·Source Business Today · Latest

What happened

Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) · Profile of Nandan Nilekani’s role in India’s digital public infrastructure, including Aadhaar, UPI and ONDC. ONDC

Key facts

  • More than 1 billion people
  • Four decades
  • 1981
  • 2002-2007
  • 2009
  • Billions of UPI transactions every month

Why this matters

Prioritize partnerships or capabilities in ONDC-enabled discovery, fulfillment, payments and seller tooling, where interoperability could create strategic distribution advantages.