RBI to kickstart Digital Rupee pilot today

The Reserve Bank of India announced that it will launch its digital rupee on November 1 as a pilot project for transactions in the wholesale market. The digital rupee will be used to settle inter-bank transactions of bonds issued by the government, the RBI said in a statement.

The digital currency is equivalent to the banknote but will be issued in electronic form.

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 — have been identified for participation in the pilot, the RBI said.

It also said that a pilot of the digital rupee for the retail market would be launched within a month in among a closed group of customers and merchants.