Last Updated: March 13, 2023, 14:49 IST
FM Nirmala Sitharaman (File picture)
The e₹ pilot for retail section was launched on December 1, 2022 in 5 choose places in closed person group for making Person to Person (P2P) and Person to Merchant (P2M) transactions.
Digital or e-rupee value over Rs 130 crore is in circulation on a pilot foundation as of February 28, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman stated on Monday.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) had launched pilots in digital rupee in the wholesale section (e₹-W) on November 1, 2022 and in the retail section (e₹-R) on December 1, 2022.
Nine banks, viz., 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 taking part in the digital rupee wholesale pilot, Sitharaman stated.
“As on February 28, 2023, the entire digital rupee – Retail (e₹-R) and digital rupee – wholesale (e₹-W) in circulation is Rs 4.14 crore and Rs 126.27 crore, respectively,” Sitharaman said in a written reply in the Lok Sabha.
The e₹-R 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 e₹-R through a digital wallet offered by the participating banks and stored on mobile phones/devices.
The e₹ pilot for retail segment was launched on December 1, 2022 in 5 select locations in closed user group for making Person to Person (P2P) and Person to Merchant (P2M) transactions.
The on-boarded merchants comprise various segments like tea vendors, fruit sellers, street side and sidewalk vendors (including migrant fruit vendors selling on the pavement opposite the RBI’s headquarters, Mumbai), small shopkeepers etc,” Sitharaman stated.
Further, institutional retailers like retail chains, petrol pumps and many others. have additionally been on-boarded to allow transactions in digital rupee throughout varied retailers.
Few on-line retailers have additionally been enabled to just accept digital rupee for the comfort of customers.
In the roughly three months of the pilot, the entire digital rupee – Retail (e₹-R) in circulation in the choose places is Rs 4.14 crore, the minister stated.
“Various use instances, technological structure and design options are being examined in the course of the pilot… Further steps, together with enlargement of use case, should be by a phased implementation technique on the idea of suggestions obtained in the course of the pilots,” Sitharaman added.
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