Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Her Majesty Queen Máxima of the Netherlands on Thursday, 25 June 2026, holding discussions on how India's Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) is advancing financial inclusion at scale. Queen Máxima also serves as the UN Secretary-General's Special Advocate for Financial Health, making her a key global voice on the intersection of digital tools and economic access.

Sharing the update on social media, Prime Minister Modi described being 'delighted' to meet the Queen, noting her role as 'a long-standing global voice for financial inclusion.' The two leaders discussed how India's DPI-led revolution is reshaping access to financial services for millions of citizens.

Context

India's Digital Public Infrastructure is an integrated digital stack built on three foundational pillars: Aadhaar (digital identity), the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) (real-time interoperable payments), and the Account Aggregator framework (consent-based financial data sharing). Together, these systems have enabled previously unbanked and underbanked populations to access formal financial services at a pace and scale that has drawn international attention.

The Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana, launched in 2014, first opened bank account access to tens of millions of Indians without formal banking relationships. UPI, rolled out in 2016, then created the low-cost, real-time payments layer that made those accounts practically usable for everyday transactions.

Policy Backdrop

India used its G20 Presidency in 2023 to actively frame DPI as a global public good, advocating for its adoption by developing nations as a scalable, sovereign alternative to proprietary fintech platforms. The government has consistently positioned the DPI model not as an export product but as an open architecture that other countries can adapt to their own contexts.

Queen Máxima's mandate as UN Special Advocate for Financial Health directly aligns with this agenda. Her office works with governments and multilateral institutions to promote policies that connect underserved populations to formal financial systems — a mission that India's DPI experience directly informs.

Stakeholders and Impact

The primary beneficiaries of India's DPI model are the country's previously unbanked populations — hundreds of millions of citizens who now transact digitally, access credit, and receive government transfers through linked accounts. Beyond India, developing nations across Africa, Southeast Asia, and Latin America have expressed interest in replicating elements of the Indian stack.

Fintech developers and multilateral development institutions also stand to benefit from any framework that emerges from such bilateral engagements, as shared standards and interoperability agreements can open new markets and reduce the cost of cross-border financial services.

What's Next

Observers will watch for follow-up announcements from either the Indian government or the United Nations on concrete cooperation frameworks tied to this meeting. Any joint initiative could accelerate DPI adoption in third countries, particularly those where Queen Máxima's advocacy office is already active.

The meeting reinforces India's broader diplomatic strategy of using digital governance achievements as a pillar of its international engagement, a pattern that is likely to continue as the country deepens ties with multilateral institutions and like-minded partners ahead of upcoming global development forums.