In Just 4-5 Months, Digital Rupee Worth Rs 130 Crore Is Already In Circulation, Says FM Sitharaman

In just 4-5 months since its pilot project was launched, digital rupee worth over Rs 130 crore are already in circulation, India¡¯s Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Monday.

Rs 130 Crore Worth Of Digital Rupee In Circulation

PTI

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) had launched pilots in the digital rupee in the wholesale segment on November 1, 2022, and in the retail segment on December 1, 2022.

Nine banks, viz., the State Bank of India, Bank of Baroda, Union Bank of India, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Yes Bank, IDFC First Bank, and HSBC, have been participating in the digital rupee wholesale pilot, Sitharaman said, as per a PTI report.

"As on February 28, 2023, the total digital rupee - Retail and digital rupee - wholesale in circulation is Rs 4.14 crore and Rs 126.27 crore, respectively," FM Sitharaman said in a written reply in the Lok Sabha.

Also Read: UPI & Netbanking Tough Competitors For Digital Rupee: Say Bankers

What Is Digital Rupee?

indiatoday

For the uninitiated, digital rupee is in the form of a digital token that represents legal tender. It is being issued in the same denominations that paper currency and coins are currently issued.

It is being distributed through financial intermediaries, i.e., banks. Users can transact with digital rupee through a digital wallet offered by the participating banks and stored on mobile phones/devices. The e-rupee pilot for retail segment was launched on December 1, 2022, in 5 select locations in a closed user group for making person-to-person (P2P) and person-to-merchant (P2M) transactions.

Digital Rupee's Rising Adoption

indianexpress

The on-boarded merchants comprise various segments like tea vendors, fruit sellers, streetside vendors, and sidewalk vendors (including migrant fruit vendors selling on the pavement opposite the RBI's headquarters in Mumbai), small shopkeepers, etc.," Sitharaman said.

Further, institutional merchants like retail chains, petrol pumps, etc. have also been onboarded to enable transactions in digital rupee across various outlets, as per the report.

Few online merchants have also been enabled to accept digital rupee for the convenience of users. In the approximately three months of the pilot, the total digital rupee (retail) in circulation in the select locations is Rs 4.14 crore, FM said.

"Various use cases, technological architecture and design features are being tested during the pilot... Further steps, including expansion of use case, have to be through a phased implementation strategy on the basis of feedback received during the pilots," FM Nirmala Sitharaman added.

Also Read: Explained: How RBIs Digital Rupee (e?) Is Different From UPI

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