e₹ — Digital Rupee.

Definition

The e₹ (e-rupee) is the Reserve Bank of India's CBDC — India's official currency issued in digital form, live in retail pilot since December 2022. It is not a stablecoin or a private cryptocurrency; it's central-bank money, carrying the same legal status as a physical rupee.

Where the pilot stands in 2026

The e₹ has reached roughly 10 million retail users as of April 2026 (up from around 6 million a year earlier), with cumulative transaction volume near $3.6 billion since launch — even as total value in circulation actually fell 24%, from ₹1,016.5 crore to ₹771.7 crore over the same period, a reminder that user growth and circulation value don't move in lockstep for a currency still finding its practical use cases. Those use cases are expanding fast: February 2026 saw a programmable e₹ pilot launch for Gujarat's Public Distribution System, where beneficiaries receive digital rupees redeemable only at Fair Price Shops, followed by a similar food-subsidy pilot in Puducherry under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana.

The cross-border piece that matters most here

The RBI has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Monetary Authority of Singapore on digital asset collaboration, and has held bilateral discussions with both Singapore and the Central Bank of the UAE toward an operational cross-border CBDC pilot — with further bilateral pilots planned for 2026–27. This is the exact corridor — India and the UAE, ImmiCrypt's two home markets — discussed on our Government & CBDC partnerships page and in our About page's explanation of why we're headquartered in both.