India’s central bank, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), has reportedly asked four banks to test the country’s central bank digital currency (CBCC) ahead of its public launch.
RBI India’s CBCC along with public sector banks
The Reserve Bank of India, the country’s central bank, has asked four public sector banks to test the Central Bank of India’s digital currency (CBDC), Monkon Control reported on Monday, citing unnamed bank officials.
One of the officials was heard saying.
RBI has asked State Bank of India, Punjab National Bank, Union Bank of India and Bank of Baroda to conduct the pilot internally.
“There is a pilot on CBCCs,” another senior public sector bank official confirmed to the publication. “RBI may come up with a start this year. Exactly when to roll out the product and specifications should be seen.
The Reserve Bank of India is said to be consulting with several fintech companies on the digital rupee. Among them is US firm FIS, which has been advising central banks on CBCC issues such as offline and programmatic payments, financial inclusion and cross-border CBCC payments.
FIS senior director Julia Demidova told the news outlet last week.
FIS has done various engagements with RBI… Our connected ecosystem can be extended to RBI to test different CDC options.
“Whether wholesale or retail CBDC trading, our technology can also be extended to commercial banks where central bank money can be digitally controlled and tokenized,” he said.
India’s Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, while presenting the Federal Budget 2022 in February, announced that the RBI would issue a CBDC this financial year. In May, the central bank said it would take a “standardized approach” to the launch of the digital rupee.
“Digital rupee will be the digital form of our physical rupee and will be under the control of RBI. It will be a system to exchange physical currency for digital currency,” Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi explained earlier.
Meanwhile, the RBI advocates a ban on all cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ether. RBI Deputy Governor T. Rabbi Sankar said earlier this year that cryptocurrencies have “no fundamental cash flow” and “no intrinsic value,” adding that they are “similar to Ponzi schemes and can be even worse.” The central banker emphasized, “Banking of cryptocurrencies is probably the most advisable option in India.
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