RBI preparing to trial a CBDC with public sector banks and fintechs

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) talks with fintech companies and state-controlled banks about the trial run of CBDC on Sept 5. 

RBI preparing to trial a CBDC with public sector banks and fintechs

The trial CBDC in India before the end of this fiscal year, most probably in three steps U.S based FIS is reportedly participating. 

FUS was mentioned as one of the fintech companies with which the RBI is consulting. FIS senior director Julia Demidova confirmed that FIS had had different engagements with RBI and our connected ecosystem might be expanded to the RBI to experiment with different CBDC options. 

FIS declared in talks with public sector banks State Bank of India, Punjab National Bank, Union Bank of India, and Bank of Baroda on participating in the trial. In this bank, governments hold 50% of the stakes. 

RBI also expressed it was looking at a phased implementation of a CBDC. an Indian CBDC would be introduced in three steps in 2022 and 2023. Nirmala Sitharaman an Indian Finance Minister expressed the influence a CBDC would have on the country's economic growth. 

India's Unified Payments Interface (UPI) real-time payment system has been presented as a competitor to cryptocurrency and by its nature to CBDC. as well RBI said IMF conference in June "We believe that central bank digital currencies (CBDC) could be able to kill whatever little case that could be for private cryptocurrencies."

The RBI has been deeply suspicious of cryptocurrency and while crypto trading is not illegal in the country taxes imposed this year have had a chilling effect on the crypto industry.

Related: Indian Crypto Market Is Growing: Report Shows the Country Has 115 Million Crypto Investors