RBI to Launch the Central Bank Digital Currency in Phases
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is working on a "phased
implementation of a Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) in both wholesale and
retail segments." The RBI Act, 1934 has been amended to allow the Central
Bank to begin the pilot phase and issue a digital currency.
Central Bank Digital Currency Will Be Introduced in Stages
The Reserve
Bank of India (RBI) is planning to issue the much-awaited Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC). The Minister of State in the Ministry of Finance has
independently provided an update on the progress.
The RBI
Executive Director, Ajay Kumar Choudhary, was quoted by the media during a
keynote address at the PICUP Fintech Conference and Awards Function on
Wednesday:
"RBI is
working on a phased implementation of a Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) in
both wholesale and retail segments."
Pankaj
Chaudhary, Minister of State in the Ministry of Finance, stated in the Rajya
Sabha, the Upper House of Parliament, on Tuesday that the "RBI has started
the work for a phased implementation of the announcement made... in the budget
speech 2022–23."
The Union
Finance Minister, Nirmala Sitharaman, announced the launch of the
country’s CBDC in the Union Budget 2022–23. Necessary amendments have been
passed in both houses to modify the RBI Act, 1934 with the passage of the
Finance Bill 2022 to allow the Central Bank to issue a CBDC.
In June, RBI
Deputy Governor T. Rabi Sankar said the Central Bank believes that "CBDCs
would be able to kill whatever little case there could be for private
cryptocurrencies." The Indian government and the Central Bank refer to
non-state-issued cryptocurrencies, including bitcoin (BTC) and ether (ETH), as
private cryptocurrencies. The RBI also warned in May that crypto could lead to
the dollarization of a part of the Indian economy.
"Cryptocurrencies
are a clear danger," RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das stated earlier this
month. "Anything that derives value based on make-believe, without any
underlying, is just speculation under a sophisticated name," he explained.
The Reserve
Bank of India has repeatedly stated that cryptocurrencies should be banned.
However, the Finance Minister told Parliament earlier this week that
"any legislation for regulation or banning can be effective only after
significant international collaboration on evaluation of the risks and benefits
and the evolution of common taxonomy and standards."
0 Comments