India’s central bank is to drop existing requirements that it hopes will make the payments market more attractive to mobile operators, according to Financial Times.

Currently Indian operators are held back by having to partner with banks on mobile money, a rule the Reserve Bank of India is looking to change.

For instance, Vodafone has launched its M-Pesa service in India through partnerships with ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank.

In addition, the bank wants to relax restrictions on how mobile subscribers convert electronic money on their handsets into cash, a process known as “cashing out” that is carried out via an agent.

Nachiket Mor, a board member of the reserve bank, earlier this month published a report about how to promote financial inclusion for small businesses and low income households.

Mor believes mobile operators are key to pushing the bank’s agenda for greater inclusion but they need a form of licence as a “payments bank” that would give them greater freedom to develop their own services.