Archive · 12 Sep 2026
Sitharaman Urges RBI to Expand Digital Rupee Capabilities
India’s finance minister wants the digital rupee to become more useful.
The digital rupee is electronic money issued through the country’s central bank.
She said it helped complete a trial involving a tokenised corporate bond.
In that trial, the bond and its payment moved at the same time.
This could make financial transactions faster and reduce the need for some middlemen.
However, faster systems could also spread mistakes, fraud and market problems more quickly.
She warned that AI can help find fraud but can also help attackers launch bigger cyberattacks.
She also proposed a group to help Indian technology companies work with regulators in other countries.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman urged the RBI to advance its wholesale and retail digital rupee pilots.
India’s first tokenised corporate bond pilot used the digital rupee to settle the bond and payment simultaneously.
Sitharaman said tokenisation could reduce intermediaries and speed up asset transfers, while also spreading errors, fraud and market shocks faster.
She called for stronger safeguards as agentic AI and quantum computing develop, warning that AI can enable sophisticated cyberattacks.
Sitharaman proposed a federated platform to represent India’s technology sector and help companies navigate international regulations.
- Who
- Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, the Reserve Bank of India, the Securities and Exchange Board of India, and India’s technology industry.
- What
- Sitharaman urged the RBI to strengthen its digital rupee capabilities and proposed safeguards and greater coordination for emerging technologies.
- When
- Friday, during the Global Fintech Fest 2026.
- Where
- Mumbai, India.
- Why
- To support tokenised financial markets and faster settlements while limiting cybersecurity and systemic risks.
Innovation and efficiency
Risk controls and safeguards
Tokenised financial markets
Innovation and efficiency
Using the digital rupee for tokenised assets could reduce intermediaries and allow asset and payment transfers to settle almost instantly.
Risk controls and safeguards
The same speed could allow errors, fraud and market shocks to spread more rapidly through financial systems.
Artificial intelligence
Innovation and efficiency
AI can help identify fraudsters and detect fraudulent activity faster.
Risk controls and safeguards
AI can enable attackers to automate larger and more sophisticated cyberattacks, while existing controls may not be keeping pace.
Technology industry coordination
Innovation and efficiency
A federated platform could give Indian technology companies a stronger collective voice and help them engage foreign governments and regulators.
Risk controls and safeguards
The platform would also need to address data protection, cybersecurity, licensing barriers and interoperable standards as emerging technologies develop.
- Digital rupee
- Sitharaman urged the RBI to further develop its wholesale and retail central bank digital currency pilots.
- Tokenised bond pilot
- REC completed India’s first tokenised corporate bond pilot under the SEBI regulatory sandbox.
- Simultaneous settlement
- The tokenised bond and digital rupee moved at the same time, allowing the transaction to close on the payment day.
- Potential benefits
- Tokenisation could reduce unnecessary intermediaries and make asset transfers almost instantaneous.
- Technology risks
- Sitharaman highlighted cybersecurity, agentic AI, quantum computing, fraud, errors and market shocks.
- Industry platform
- The proposed federated platform could help Indian technology companies engage foreign regulators, share cybersecurity practices and understand licensing requirements.
