India to trial digital rupee CBDC

India is all set to test its own Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) as a method of digital payments in the region.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) announced the trial of the digital rupee CBDC, which will be available in the form of a digital token representing legal tender.

According to RBI, the trial run will commence on December 1, 2022, and will be issued in the same denomination as its current fiat currency.

India is trialling CBDCs

The Reserve Bank of India is all set to run a trial for its digital rupee. Per its official statement, the pilot test will be run among selected merchants and intermediaries on December 1.

From the official press release:

The pilot would cover select locations in a closed user group (CUG) comprising participating customers and merchants.

RBI further added that the digital rupee will be issued in the same denominations as its paper currency and coins, which will make it easier for the country to adopt.

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The bank will also enable digital rupee users to transact using digital wallets created and provided by participating banks.

These digital wallets can be downloaded onto mobile phones to simplify banking procedures in the country.

According to the RBI:

Transactions can be both person-to-person (P2P) and person-to-merchant (P2M). Payments to merchants can be made using QR codes displayed at merchant locations.

Unlike cryptocurrencies, which have always been a matter of heated debate in India, CBDCs have been openly propagated as a viable method of payment by the Indian government.

The trial run initiated by the RBI is set to test the scalability of the digital Rupee and will also assess additional factors, including the process of its creation, distribution, and scope of its retail usage in real-time.

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