India’s central bank digital currency, known as the e-rupee, is drawing attention from global tech and retail giants like Google, Amazon, and Walmart.
According to the Reserve Bank of India, the RBI, these companies are want to participate in the ongoing pilot program, highlighting the growing interest in digital currencies.
E-Rupee pilot with private companies
The e-rupee pilot, which began in December 2022, initially involved only banks. But the RBI has expanded the program to include major payment service providers such as PhonePe, Google Pay, and Amazon Pay.
These companies collectively handle over 85% of all digital payments in India through the Unified Payments Interface, the UPI, processing nearly 13 billion transactions monthly.
The move also seeks to ensure the digital currency’s resilience and reliability, building public trust before a full-scale launch.
We don’t know why would the public trust yet another government currency, but here we are.
Give me your data
Expanding the pilot program allows the RBI to gather more comprehensive data and insights into the e-rupee’s practical, everyday applications.
This information is important for refining the payment system and advancing financial inclusion across the country.
The pilot currently includes major banks like State Bank of India, ICICI Bank, and HDFC Bank.
With the integration of the payment systems, the central bank expects an increase in transaction volumes and greater user engagement with the digital currency.
The e-rupee allows users to hold and transfer digital currency similarly to cash.
The pilot began in cities like New Delhi and Mumbai and has since expanded to Hyderabad and Ahmedabad.
The RBI plans to gradually increase the number of partner financial institutions and locations participating in the e-rupee initiative.
Long test-phase for the e-rupee
Digital currency transactions in the pilot peaked at over a million per day, but usage has since decreased to an average of 100,000 to 200,000 transactions daily.
The inclusion of well-known payment companies is expected to reboost interest in the e-rupee, encouraging wider public interaction with the digital currency.
The RBI announced that the pilot program will continue for several years, with no immediate plans for a large-scale rollout of the e-rupee.
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