It’s going to be a year since the Reserve Bank of India launched its very own Central Bank Digital Currency or CBDC. In fact, just a few days ago, RBI governor Shaktikanta Das, who has been leading India’s transition into digital payments while speaking at an IMF event touted CBDC, popularly known as the e-rupee, as the currency of the future.

Banks, and tech experts have said that it is an innovation that can drive financial inclusion, help digitise India’s economy, and simplify cross-border trade. After the launch, the RBI’s aim was to hit 1 million retail CBDC transactions per day by December 2023.

But now, just a little more than a month away from the deadline, CBDC is lagging far behind its goal with just 10,000–18,000 retail transactions a day.

Is the e-rupee ready to be the currency of the future yet?

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