Reliance Retail Adopts Digital Rupee, Boosting CBDC Adoption Across India

Reliance Retail, one of the largest retail chains in India, announced plans to accept the digital rupee at all its properties, following the company's successful rollout of support for the digital rupee at its Freshpik gourmet store line, TechCrunch reported.

What Happened: The company partnered with ICICI Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank and fintech firm Innoviti Technologies to implement support for the central bank digital currency (CBDC), providing consumers with an alternative payment option within its stores.

Shoppers who opt to utilize the nation's CBDC, known as the e₹-R, will receive a QR code that can be scanned at the store to complete payment. The dynamic QR code is a crucial component of the digital rupee acceptance system.

According to Reliance Retail Director V Subramaniam, the company's adoption of digital currency payments aligns with its mission to empower Indian consumers with a variety of payment options.

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He noted that as digital transactions become more popular among Indians, this initiative will allow the company to offer another convenient and secure payment method at its stores.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) outlined its plans for the CBDC in October 2022, mentioning its aim to reduce the operational costs of managing cash as one of the key motivations behind its introduction.

The RBI launched the wholesale pilot of the digital rupee in November 2022 and started a pilot program for retail consumers within a closed user group on Dec. 1, 2022.

This news story was earlier reported by Benzinga India. Stay updated on financial news and trading ideas related to Indian markets on in.benzinga.com.

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