Chief Minister of Assam inaugurates India's first AI-powered phygital branch of Slice Small Finance Bank

Exam-focused facts from the 19 May 2026 current affairs briefing.

Key facts

Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma inaugurated India’s first AI-powered “phygital” banking branch of Slice Small Finance Bank in Guwahati, Assam.
The branch is located at GS Road and features AI-enabled self-service kiosks, paperless cash deposits and withdrawals, and streamlined digital onboarding.
The facility allows customers to access credit directly through the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) interface without a separate application.
The digital banking model is designed to provide working capital to woman entrepreneurs and small store owners via their mobile phones.
The bank aims to extend access to responsible credit, savings, and payment solutions to individuals and small businesses with limited access to modern banking services.