RBI to launch pilot project of Digital Rupee in wholesale segment today

Mumbai: The Reserve Bank of India(RBI) will launch the pilot project of Digital Rupee in the wholesale segment today. Digital Rupee will be used for settlement of secondary market transactions in government securities. 

In a statement, RBI said that use of E-Rupee is expected to make the inter-bank market more efficient. Settlement in central bank money will reduce transaction costs by pre-empting the need for settlement guarantee infrastructure or for collateral to mitigate settlement risk.

RBI said that based on the



learnings from this pilot, other wholesale transactions, and cross-border payments will be the focus of future pilots. Nine banks - 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 identified for participation in the pilot. 

The first pilot use of Digital Rupee in the retail segment is planned for launch within a month in select locations in closed user groups comprising customers and merchants.