Economist Agustin Carstens praises Aadhaar, Jan-Dhan Yojana and UPI

India’s Aadhaar is a huge asset, according to renowned economist Agustín Carstens (pictured), who also praised the Unified Payments Interface (UPI), which has lowered entry barrier for smaller firms, thus levelling the playing field.

Carstens, who is general manager of the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), is former finance minister of Mexico and former governor of its central bank.

Carstens lost out to Christine Lagarde, who was French finance minister, for the post of managing director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Carstens, considered one of the most influential voices in economics, came to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to deliver the 17th C D Deshmukh Memorial Lecture on Thursday.