Retail CBDC in India Crosses 120 Million Transactions, ₹28,000 Crore in Value: RBI

India’s digital currency push reached a major milestone as the volume of retail Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) transactions crossed 120 million, with total transaction value exceeding ₹28,000 crore, according to Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Deputy Governor T Rabi Sankar. This announcement came during the RBI’s post-monetary policy press conference held on 5 December 2025, highlighting the central bank’s progress in digital payment innovation.

The Rise of Retail CBDC in India

The retail CBDC, also known as the digital rupee (e₹), is RBI’s flagship initiative aimed at offering a sovereign, secure, and efficient digital payment solution to the public.

The pilot for retail CBDC began on 1 December 2022, with a limited user base and merchant network. Since then, the adoption curve has steepened significantly, showing a growing confidence among both consumers and financial institutions.

Currently, over 8 million users are actively using the digital rupee in their daily transactions, according to RBI data.

Key Figures and Current Status

As of December 2025,

• Retail CBDC transaction volume: 120 million+
• Cumulative transaction value: Over ₹28,000 crore
• Active users: More than 8 million

This surge is attributed to targeted pilots, inclusion in government schemes, and the launch of programmable features designed for specific use cases.

Programmability and Custom Use-Cases

A significant area of focus, according to T Rabi Sankar, is programmability—the ability to design CBDCs that can be used only for specific purposes or within set conditions.

Programmable CBDCs are being explored in coordination with,

• Central and state government schemes
• Specialised banking products
• Custom use-cases for subsidies, direct benefit transfers (DBTs), and sector-specific applications

These programmable features could, for instance, enable funds to be restricted for use in only healthcare or education, or be time-bound to ensure they’re used promptly.

Retail CBDC and Cross-Border Potential

While domestic adoption is growing steadily, the RBI is also working towards enabling cross-border capabilities for the digital rupee. This future functionality could support faster remittances, currency interoperability, and real-time foreign transactions, particularly important for India’s vast diaspora and import-export community.

Fintech Participation and Innovation

To facilitate broader adoption, the RBI has launched a retail sandbox for CBDC, allowing fintech companies to develop and test applications that integrate the digital rupee. This sandbox environment enables startups and banks to,

• Build CBDC-based wallets
• Design payment and merchant interfaces
• Test transaction scalability and security
• Experiment with programmable features

These initiatives aim to make CBDC a practical and competitive alternative to UPI, cards, and mobile wallets.

Key Facts

• Retail CBDC (digital rupee) pilot started on 1 December 2022
• Over 120 million transactions, value above ₹28,000 crore as of Dec 2025
• Over 8 million users currently using retail CBDC
• RBI focuses on programmability, custom use-cases, and cross-border capability
• Retail sandbox launched for fintechs to develop digital rupee solutions