New Delhi: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday said that as of February 28, digital or e-Rupee worth over Rs 130 crore is in circulation on a pilot basis. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) pilot launched the digital rupee on November 1, 2022 in the wholesale segment and December 1, 2022 in the retail segment.
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 are participating in the Digital Rupee Wholesale Pilot. Sitharaman said. ,Also Read: Open Account With Rs 250, Get Rs 2.5 Lakh On Maturity With This Government Scheme: Return Calculator, Check Other Details,
“As on February 28, 2023, the total digital rupee – retail and digital rupee – wholesale in circulation are Rs 4.14 crore and Rs 126.27 crore, respectively,” Sitharaman said in a written reply to the Lok Sabha. ,ALSO READ: Signature Bank second lender to fail in last three days, third largest bank failure in US history,
The retail segment is in the form of a digital token that represents legal tender. It is being issued in the same denominations in which paper currency and coins are currently issued. Its distribution is being done through financial intermediaries i.e. banks. Users can transact with Digital Rupee through digital wallets offered by participating banks and stored on mobile phones/devices.
The pilot was launched on December 1, 2022 for the retail segment at 5 select locations in a closed user group to undertake Person to Person (P2P) and Person to Merchant (P2M) transactions.
The onboard merchants include various segments such as tea vendors, fruit vendors, roadside and pavement vendors (including migrant fruit vendors selling on footpaths opposite RBI’s headquarters, Mumbai), small shopkeepers etc,” Sitharaman said.
In addition, institutional merchants such as retail chains, petrol pumps, etc. have also been on-boarded to enable digital rupee transactions at various outlets. Some online merchants have also been enabled to accept digital rupees for the convenience of the users.
The minister said that in about three months of the pilot, the total digital rupee-retail in circulation in select locations is Rs 4.14 crore. “Various use cases, technical architecture and design features are being tested during the pilot… Further steps, including use case expansion, should happen through a phased implementation strategy based on the feedback received during the pilots, Sitharaman said. ,