Business, Economy & Banking Current Affairs MCQs

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Union Home and Cooperation Minister Amit Shah launched ‘Bank in a Box’ in Mumbai to modernise Urban Cooperative Banks (UCBs). The platform provides integrated services such as core banking, digital payments, cloud infrastructure, loan origination and regulatory compliance. It also includes Aadhaar-based services and Artificial Intelligence (AI)-based fraud prevention. A dedicated Security Operations Centre (SOC) will provide 24×7 cybersecurity monitoring to UCBs.

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Appeal and Complaint Management System (AppCoMS 2.0) is the upgraded Second Appeals and Complaints portal of the Central Information Commission (CIC). It was launched on 17 August 2026, replacing the earlier system introduced in 2016. It enables applicants to file RTI Second Appeals and Complaints online through dedicated user accounts. Central Public Information Officers (CPIOs) can access case files and submit documents online. The system incorporates Digital Signature Certificates (DSCs) for secure authentication of notices and orders. It aims to provide end-to-end digital processing and streamline RTI case management.

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India’s makhana (fox nut) market is projected to reach ₹11,000–12,000 crore by 2029–30. The domestic market grew by 17–18% annually between 2021–22 and 2024–25. India produced 63,910 MT of makhana in 2024–25, while production is estimated at 80,590 MT in 2025–26. Bihar remains the leading producer, with estimated production of 60,000 MT in 2025–26. The government announced the National Makhana Board in the Union Budget 2025–26. A ₹476.03-crore Central Sector Scheme for Development of Makhana has been approved for 2025–26 to 2030–31, focusing on research, quality seeds, farmer skills, post-harvest management, branding, exports and quality control.

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Razorpay has launched Razorpay Vulcan, an artificial intelligence-powered payments foundation model developed using technology from NVIDIA and Amazon Web Services (AWS). The company describes Vulcan as India’s first transformer-based artificial intelligence foundation model specifically built for payments. The model aims to improve payment reliability, fraud detection, transaction routing and checkout experience. It was developed after a study involving 1.5 million shoppers and more than 51,000 businesses.

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Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY), launched on 28 August 2014, has completed 12 years and entered its 13th year. It was launched as the National Mission on Financial Inclusion to provide unbanked adults access to basic banking services. As of 19 August 2026, PMJDY has 59.09 crore accounts, with deposits of ₹3.17 lakh crore. 41.29 crore RuPay debit cards have been issued to account holders. 55.7% of account holders are women, while 77.8% of accounts are in rural and semi-urban areas. The scheme forms the core of the Jan-Dhan–Aadhaar–Mobile (JAM) Trinity, enabling direct and efficient delivery of government benefits.

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Recently, Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) released the National Accounts Statistics–2026, incorporating the revised national accounts series. The base year for India’s National Accounts has been changed from 2011–12 to 2022–23. The revised base year was adopted on 27 February 2026. The revision aims to better capture structural changes, relative prices and changing consumption patterns in the Indian economy.

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The Districts as Export Hubs (DEH) Initiative is being strengthened to transform every district into a centre of export planning and global market access. It is implemented by the Department of Commerce through Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT), DEH identifies district-specific products and services with export potential and strengthens MSMEs, employment and local economies. DEH builds on the One District One Product (ODOP) concept and supports Aatmanirbhar Bharat and Vocal for Local. As of January 2026, DEH covered more than 770 districts, while 590 draft District Export Action Plans (DEAPs) had been prepared by March 2026, with 249 formally adopted.

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The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) have launched “Demat 2.0”, a pilot project for tokenising corporate bonds. The pilot was launched at the Global Fintech Fest in Mumbai in September 2026. It aims to test the use of blockchain technology, Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) and smart contracts for faster securities settlement. The initiative uses Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) to bring the securities and settlement processes closer together.

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GIFT City (Gujarat International Finance Tec-City) has improved by nine places to rank 37th globally in the latest Global Financial Centres Index (GFCI 40). It was ranked 46th in GFCI 39, showing a significant improvement in its overall ranking. GIFT City has also entered the top 15 financial centres in the Asia-Pacific region. The GFCI evaluates financial centres on factors such as FinTech capabilities, access to finance, skilled talent, regulatory environment and ICT infrastructure. GIFT City is India’s first International Financial Services Centre (IFSC) and serves as a hub for financial and IT services. It supports sectors including banking, financial services, insurance, IT/ITeS and FinTech.

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Telangana recorded the highest combined (rural and urban) inflation among Indian states in August 2026, at 6.27%. Telangana remained at the top for eight consecutive months, from January to August 2026. Its inflation peaked at 6.36% in June before easing to 6.27% in August. Other states with high combined inflation in August were Tamil Nadu (5.92%), Madhya Pradesh (5.55%), Andhra Pradesh (5.53%) and Odisha (5.52%). Rural inflation was higher than urban inflation in 23 of 28 states. The data was released by the National Statistical Office (NSO) using the 2024 base year.