Common Customer ID: Whether it is banking, insurance, or mutual funds, a single customer ID serves all purposes—learn about its benefits.

A major shift is underway in the country's financial system. To enhance convenience for the common man, the government is working on creating a 'Common Customer ID.' This ID will serve as a unified identifier across banking, insurance, and mutual fund sectors, eliminating the need for separate customer IDs for each of these services. As a first step, banks and insurance companies are preparing to launch this common ID as early as August, with asset managers to be integrated later.

Market regulators and industry executives state that this new facility will allow customers to access their financial products without needing separate identification documents for each. Known as the Central Know Your Customer (CKYC) system, it requires only the customer's consent to aggregate data. Once an account is opened under this system, all data will be stored in a central registry, allowing customers to easily view their information.

**A Decade-Long Effort**

The significance of this system is evident from the fact that it is the result of ten years of hard work rather than an overnight creation. India has long been striving to develop a digital system similar to those in Singapore and European nations, enabling customers to access all their financial products through a single identity framework. This requires a unified verification process.

**Helping to Curb Fraud**

Financial regulators state that this new system will also aid in detecting and preventing fraud. Capital market firms, such as mutual funds and brokerages, will gain access to the system starting next year and will be permitted to collect sector-specific data. Sources familiar with the matter indicate that the RBI, SEBI, and IRDA are collaborating to develop this framework. The objective is to expand and simplify access to financial products across the country. World Bank data reveals that while 89 percent of adults in India possess bank accounts, participation in mutual funds, insurance, and pension schemes remains very low.

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