The Reserve Bank of India is presently in talks with at least 18 other nations regarding the potential for cross-border payments using its CBDC, the “digital rupee.” The CBDC looks forward to increasing the country’s capacity for international trade with countries, without U.S. dollar reserves. The Economic Times published an article on June 27 regarding the ambitious foreign trade objectives the RBI has for India’s CBDC. It refers to a number of statements made in public by Shaktikanta Das, governor of the RBI.
The RBI Governor also stressed the importance of international commerce infrastructure in a speech given in London in June. He also discussed that the digital rupee was expected to have 1 million domestic users by the beginning of July. However, international payments will also become faster, smoother, and very affordable. Furthermore, he mentioned that the officials are already in conversations with other central banks that have implemented or are implementing CBDCs.
During his speech, he also expressed India’s readiness to offer the CBDC as a payment mechanism for purchasing Indian goods to countries that are short on US dollars. Another rationale for leaning heavily on the digital rupee for global trade dealings is the desire to preserve the country’s US currency reserves.
In November 2022, the RBI started its wholesale digital rupee pilot project, and in February 2023, it began its retail digital rupee pilot project. In March, it launched a collaboration with the Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates to investigate the feasibility of a CBDC bridge for commerce and remittances.
