In the Global Fintech Fest 2025 held in Mumbai on October 7-9, 2025, the RBI has taken a step forward in making India’s digital finance journey more advanced, with the launch of offline digital rupee — officially known as ‘e₹’. Reserve Bank of India has issued e₹ in digital form in January 2025, which offers features similar to physical cash like convenience of use, guarantee of RBI, finality of settlement.
It can be stored in user’s digital wallet and van be used to receive, send, or make transactions just like any physical Indian currency and their tagline is “Cash, but Digital”.
Digital Cash: Enjoy seamless transactions anywhere
In today’s digital age, we’ve all been there, relying on UPI payments for even the smallest transactions, only to be caught off guard by network issues. Imagine being on a mountain trek or a road trip, phone signal fading, and you’re stuck with limited cash.
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That’s where e₹ (Digital Rupee) comes in – a digital form of cash that lets you make payments even when your phone’s signal is weak or non-existent. It’s like having a reliable digital wallet that works wherever you go!
With e₹, you can enjoy your trip without worrying about network issues or running out of cash. Whether it’s paying for food, stay, or activities, e₹ makes transactions smooth and hassle-free.
How to handle payments without exact denominations
The feature of providing the required change is available in all the e₹ wallets. For example, if one desires to purchase an item of Rs 150 from a merchant but has only Rs 200 denomination available in the e₹ wallet, she/he can enter Rs 150 in the amount field while sending the money; Rs 150 will automatically be credited to the merchant while the balance Rs 50 will be returned to the e₹ wallet.
How to use
- Get the e₹ wallet app that supports your bank and link it to your bank account. You can download it from: Google play store for android users and Apple app store for iOS users.
- Now, add fund or money to your wallet.
- Scan the e₹ QR code, and make the payment. Make sure the name and other details like phone numbers/contact before making any payments.
- You can receive e₹ payments from others into your wallets, by sharing your QR code.
Advantages of using e₹ wallets
- e₹ wallets are safe and secure. There is a cyber-security framework to ensure that e₹ is kept secure in the user’s wallet.
- It’s wallet is available and supported both on Android and iOS mobile devices.
- The e₹ works 24 hours x 7 days a week.
- No charges or fees associated with using e₹ or e₹ wallets.
- The offline feature of e₹ enables the user to transact in locations with limited or no internet connectivity.
- Most of the banks enabled this feature.
Banks offering CBDC wallets
- Below mentioned banks provides CBDC wallets, runs on both Android and iOS, using their applications
- State Bank of India: eRupee by SBI
- ICICI Bank: Digital Rupee by ICICI Bank
- IDFC First Bank: IDFC First Bank Digital Rupee
- HDFC Bank: HDFC Bank Digital Rupee
- PNB: PNB Digital Rupee
- Union Bank of India: Digital Rupee by UBI
- Bank of Baroda: Bank of Baroda Digital Rupee
- Kotak Mahindra Bank: Digital Rupee by Kotak Bank
- Canara Bank: Canara Digital Rupee
- Axis Bank: Axis Mobile Digital Rupee
- IndusInd Bank: Digital Rupee by IndusInd Bank
- Federal Bank: Federal Bank Digital Rupee
- Karnataka Bank: Karnataka Bank Digital Rupee
- Indian Bank: Indian Bank Digital Rupee
- YES BANK: Yes Bank Digital Rupee
