THEBUSINESSBYTES BUREAU

BHUBANESWAR, FEBRUARY 6, 2026

Odisha has firmly positioned itself on the global digital map as a future-ready hub for artificial intelligence, FinTech and inclusive technology-led growth, with the successful conclusion of the inaugural Black Swan Summit India 2026 in Bhubaneswar. The landmark two-day summit was held in the august presence of the President of India, Droupadi Murmu, as Chief Guest, and under the leadership of the Chief Minister of Odisha, Mohan Charan Majhi, signalling the State’s rising stature in India’s digital and financial transformation journey.

Organised by the Government of Odisha under its ambitious BharatNetra initiative, in partnership with the Singapore-headquartered Global Finance & Technology Network (GFTN), the Summit showcased Odisha’s vision to build a globally connected ecosystem anchored in talent development, innovation, large-scale job creation and sustained global investment. Over two days, nearly 1,500 delegates from 24 countries and close to 100 speakers from five continents converged in the State capital, bringing together senior policymakers, global financial institutions, technology leaders, investors, academics, students and entrepreneurs.

Deliberations at the Summit focused on actionable pathways for Odisha’s economic development through AI-enabled finance, FinTech and InsurTech-led digital public infrastructure, alongside the creation of future-ready skills and dignified employment opportunities. The discussions underlined Odisha’s intent to not merely adopt technology, but to deploy it at population scale for inclusive growth.

Addressing the gathering, President Droupadi Murmu underscored the centrality of human capital and global collaboration in shaping India’s digital future. “Advancing skill development, establishing global capability centres and strengthening innovation capacity are critical investments in human capital,” she said. “I am pleased to note that the Government of Odisha has launched the BharatNetra initiative to build a future-ready workforce and innovation ecosystem in digital, financial and insurance technology sectors. I appreciate the Government of Odisha and the Global Finance & Technology Network for co-organising the Black Swan Summit as part of this initiative. I am confident that the discussions and collaborations emerging from this Summit will have a transformative impact not only for Odisha, but for India and the world.”

A major highlight of the Summit was the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the Department of Electronics & IT, Government of Odisha, and Sarvam AI to establish a Sovereign AI Park in the State. With an envisaged investment of ₹20,000 crore, the initiative is expected to generate thousands of skilled direct and indirect jobs. The Sovereign AI Park will create secure compute infrastructure and enable population-scale AI applications across education, agriculture, healthcare, governance and public safety, with a strong focus on voice-enabled platforms to strengthen last-mile service delivery.

Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi outlined Odisha’s long-term digital growth roadmap, stating, “Odisha is emerging as a hub for FinTech and InsurTech innovation, supported by the IT Policy 2025 and the forthcoming FinTech Policy, which aim to provide regulatory clarity, incentives and infrastructure for job creation and investment. The State is simultaneously developing an ecosystem for Global Capability Centres, supported by earmarked land, modern infrastructure, data centres and semiconductor manufacturing initiatives.”

Reinforcing investor confidence, Chief Secretary Anu Garg said that Odisha’s message to global partners has been consistent and credible. “The State offers policy stability, regulatory clarity, institutional continuity, a growing industry-ready talent base and a governance framework rooted in trust. These are the reasons why global investors and companies are committing to support Odisha through investment, talent pipelines, global capability centres and innovation partnerships,” she said.

The Summit witnessed distinguished participation from national and global leaders, including Governor of Odisha Dr. Hari Babu Kambhampati, IT Minister Dr. Mukesh Mahaling, Higher Education Minister Suryabanshi Suraj, Additional Chief Secretary Vishal Kumar Dev, GFTN Chairman Ravi Menon, and GFTN Group CEO Sopnendu Mohanty, alongside prominent international figures such as Douglas Feagin of Ant International, Michael Schlein of Accion, Makoto Shibata of FINOLAB, and senior leaders from MUFG, SMBC and NUS.

Highlighting the progress of the BharatNetra partnership, Ravi Menon recalled its origins in growing Singapore–Odisha ties. “At the invitation of President Droupadi Murmu, Singapore President Tharman Shanmugaratnam visited India last year. His visit to Odisha signalled the State’s strategic importance as India’s eastern gateway and marked a watershed moment in Singapore–Odisha relations. One of the MoUs signed then led to the BharatNetra partnership. We have made substantial progress in just one year,” he said.

The partnership has already delivered tangible outcomes, including the graduation of the first cohort of 195 students from a hands-on FinTech and InsurTech programme designed by the National University of Singapore’s Asian Institute of Digital Finance. With a target of training 7,000 students over five years, top performers will gain global exposure through initiatives in Japan and at the Singapore FinTech Festival 2026.

The Summit also saw multiple strategic MoUs with industry partners spanning insurance, digital finance, education and technology, creating seamless pathways from education to employment and from policy to pilots. Notably, a partnership involving Ant International and GFTN will support women entrepreneurs in Odisha to scale digital commerce and access global markets.

As the curtains fell on the Black Swan Summit India 2026, it marked a defining moment in Odisha’s journey towards becoming a globally connected centre for AI-enabled finance, innovation and global capability services.