The RBI has yet to announce when and if the digital rupee will be released for general use.
India’s largest retail chain, Reliance Retail, has added support for the country’s central bank digital currency (CBDC), called the digital rupee. What reported Per TechCrunch, the company said it had partnered with ICICI Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank and fintech firm Innoviti Technologies to launch in-store support for the digital rupee.
The Indian CBDC is still in its testing stages after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) made the announcement last year. The trial is limited to institutions and merchants and is intended for retail consumers only. With Reliance Retail participating in the trial, the company said that users wishing to make payments with Digital Rupee will receive a QR code to complete their transaction.
With the Reliance Retail embrace of CBDC starting in its Freshpik line of gourmet stores, the firm plans to roll out the feature to the rest of its outlets eventually.
“This landmark initiative to pioneer the acceptance of digital currency in our stores is in line with the company’s strategic vision of offering the power of choice to Indian consumers,” V Subramaniam, Director of Reliance Retail, said in a statement. release. “With more Indians willing to transact digitally, this initiative will help us provide another efficient and secure alternative payment method for customers in our stores.”
The race to launch a central bank digital currency is emerging as one of the biggest talking points for central banks around the world. With more than 110 Central Banks confirmed by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to be in active investigation on the digital versions of their National Currencies.
India’s dip into this space came recently as other major Asian countries including China, Thailand and Hong Kong advanced their own research on the new payment model.
Reliance Retail to bolster RBI’s CBDC efforts
Reliance Retail has a total number of active customers that exceeded 193 million people spread across the country. With its reach and diversity, the company can be a very important partner in helping the RBI push its CBDC agenda forward.
In other countries like China, which have launched retail trials for their own CBDC tests, the role of major retail companies has never been underestimated. In the case of the People’s Bank of China (PBoC), the efforts of Alibaba Group Holdings Ltd (HKG: 9988) to China’s Uber DiDi Global Inc (OTCMKTS: DIDIY), the bank received all the support it could get with its retail trials . schedule.
While most Indian financial firms have been bottlenecked in encouraging crypto transactions, the digital rupee (e₹) is being billed as a game changer.
“e₹ is a game changer in the digital revolution unleashed in the country,” Deepak Sharma, president and chief digital officer of Kotak Mahindra Bank, said in a statement. “All customers with e₹-R wallets will now be able to enjoy easy, secure and instant digital transactions at Reliance Retail stores.”
The RBI has yet to announce when the digital rupee will be released for general use, if you will.
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Benjamin Godfrey is a blockchain enthusiast and journalist who enjoys writing about the real-life applications of blockchain technology and innovations to drive mainstream acceptance and global integration of emerging technology. His desire to educate people about cryptocurrencies inspires his contributions to renowned blockchain-based sites and media. Benjamin Godfrey is a lover of sports and agriculture.
