Nirmala Sitharaman Invites French Investment in India

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman participated in the India-France Business Roundtable in Paris, engaging with leading French businesses and financial institutions to strengthen bilateral economic ties and explore new investment opportunities.

Addressing the gathering, the Finance Minister said the India-France Strategic Partnership is well positioned to drive sustainable, resilient and innovation-led growth amid rapid technological transformation, supply chain diversification, energy transition and evolving geopolitical developments.

Highlighting India's growing digital economy, she noted that platforms such as Aadhaar, UPI, DigiLocker, ONDC and India Stack have transformed digital governance, with India accounting for nearly half of the world's real-time digital payments.

Union Minister for Finance & Corporate Affairs Smt. @nsitharaman participated in an India-France Business Roundtable with leading French businesses and institutions, in Paris, today.

Setting the context of a rapidly evolving global economy shaped by technological transformation,… pic.twitter.com/Ak6rdaw93L

— Ministry of Finance (@FinMinIndia) July 2, 2026

Sitharaman emphasized that India and France are trusted partners in shaping the global AI ecosystem and called for deeper collaboration in trusted artificial intelligence, digital infrastructure and next-generation technologies.

She also highlighted India's investment opportunities in healthcare, pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, renewable energy, green hydrogen, battery storage, offshore wind and smart grids, driven by the country's target of achieving 500 GW of non-fossil fuel capacity by 2030, the National Green Hydrogen Mission and Production Linked Incentive (PLI) schemes.

The Finance Minister showcased the rapid growth of the International Financial Services Centre Authority (IFSCA), which has over 1,200 registered entities and banking assets exceeding USD 111 billion as of June 2026.

She also promoted the National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF), highlighting its upcoming USD 3.5 billion Infrastructure Fund II and USD 1 billion Private Markets Fund II.
Inviting French businesses to partner in India's Viksit Bharat 2047 vision, Sitharaman emphasized the importance of expanding long-term cooperation across strategic sectors.

Representatives from leading French financial institutions acknowledged India's decade-long economic reforms, ease of doing business initiatives and reduced compliance burden, while expressing interest in strengthening long-term investment collaboration between the two countries.