Now Reading: Programmable digital rupee gains ground; RBI says adoption rising
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Programmable digital rupee gains ground; RBI says adoption rising
Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Deputy Governor Rohit Jain said on Wednesday that both Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) and Unified Lending Interface (ULI) are being used for actual transactions, not just…
The Story in Brief
Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Deputy Governor Rohit Jain said on Wednesday that both Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) and Unified Lending Interface (ULI) are being used for actual transactions, not just pilots, and adoption is rising. He told The Hindu that 12 states have digitised land records and state governments show increasing interest. However, New Indian Express reports that retail digital rupee usage remains modest compared to UPI. Bank executives said programmable CBDC, which restricts spending to pre-defined purposes, is gaining traction for welfare schemes, direct benefit transfers and employee benefits. Punjab National Bank has 172,000 users and 1.53 million transactions. Canara Bank's CBDC business rose from 11.99 lakh to 19.26 lakh. Indian Bank processes 40,000-50,000 transactions monthly.
The Indian Opinion
The RBI's optimism about CBDC and ULI adoption must be weighed against bank executives' admission that retail digital rupee struggles against UPI's dominance. The story is not one-sided: the programmable use case shows promise for targeted welfare, but that risks turning the digital rupee into a surveillance tool for government spending. The real test will be whether voluntary retail adoption ever takes off without being forced through scheme payments.
Sources (2): thehindu.com, newindianexpress.com
This story was synthesised by AI from the 2 sources linked above.
Updated: this story now draws on 2 sources.
