Reliance Retail rolls out support for digital Rupee payments

When customers choose to pay with the digital Rupee, they will receive a QR code at the store, which they can use to complete the transaction

By Shashank Bhardwaj

Published: Feb 6, 2023 04:27:26 PM IST

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Image: CNBC-TV18

Reliance Retail, one of India's largest retail companies, has declared that it has begun accepting the digital form of the Indian currency, the Rupee, at one of its store locations and intends to expand this to all its operations.

According to a report by TechCrunch, Reliance Retail has announced that it has implemented support for the central bank digital currency, the digital Rupee, at its Freshpik gourmet store.

Reliance Retail plans to extend this support to all its stores, which could encourage wider adoption of the digital Rupee in India.

A senior official at Reliance Retail, V Subramaniam, stated that the decision to accept the central bank digital currency aligns with the company's goal of providing Indian consumers with a range of choices.

Subramaniam added that this move also provides customers with another payment option when shopping at Reliance Retail stores.

The report mentioned that Reliance Retail worked with ICICI Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank, and Innoviti Technologies, a fintech firm, to launch support for the central bank digital currency.

When customers choose to pay with the digital Rupee, they will receive a QR code at the store, which they can use to complete the transaction.

The Reserve Bank of India outlined its plans for the central bank digital currency in a 51-page document on October 7. The central bank considered various factors, including the potential benefits and drawbacks, in the document.

The RBI stated that one of the reasons for creating a CBDC is to lower the expenses associated with managing cash.

In November of 2022, the Reserve Bank of India launched a pilot program for the wholesale version of the digital Rupee for use by institutions and merchants.

On December 1, 2022, the central bank initiated a pilot for the retail version of the CBDC, available to a limited group of merchants and consumers.

The writer is the founder at yMedia. He ventured into crypto in 2013 and is an ETH maximalist. Twitter: @bhardwajshash