Pine Labs has partnered with ICICI Bank to launch CBDC as a payment option under this RBI-run pilot project.
Pine Labs’ execution of the digital rupee payment process is fully digital via a dynamic QR embedded in its smart Android PoS terminals
Pine Labs, an omnichannel merchant commerce platform, on Tuesday announced the acceptance of digital rupee on its point-of-sale (PoS) terminals in partnership with ICICI Bank, at major outlets in Mumbai and Bengaluru.
“Pine Labs’ execution of the digital rupee payment process is entirely digital via a dynamic QR integrated into its Android PoS smart terminals,” the company said in a statement.
Also Read: Indian Digital Rupee for Retail: Is It the Same as Cryptocurrency? Know how it will work for users
The RBI Digital Rupee, or Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC), is currently in service on a pilot basis, for person-to-person (P2P) and person-to-merchant (P2M) digital rupee transactions. Banks that facilitate this are State Bank of India, ICICI Bank, Yes Bank, IDFC First Bank, Union Bank of India, Bank of Baroda, Kotak Mahindra Bank and HDFC Bank.
B Amrish Rau, CEO of Pine Labs, said, “The CBDC or digital rupee opens up exciting opportunities. It can accelerate the migration from paper money to digital. Pine Labs is pleased to partner with ICICI Bank to launch CBDC as a payment option under this RBI-run pilot project.”
Bijith Bhaskar, Head (Digital Channels & Partnerships) at ICICI Bank, said, “The introduction of CBDC or Digital Rupee is a historic milestone in India’s digital journey. India is among the few countries in the world to have its own digital currency. The digital rupee, which is a symbolic numeric version of the Indian rupee, is a resilient, secure and additional way for users to make payments.”
He added that increased acceptance of the digital rupee would accelerate its adoption by customers. “We are excited to partner with Pine Labs to make Digital Rupee an accepted payment method on their merchant point-of-sale terminals. This would present a seamless payment option for users and improve operational efficiency for merchants equipped with Pine Labs PoS terminals.”
Also read: Can you use digital rupee without a bank account? Know how the Digital Rupee Wallet works
The controlled retail CBDC pilot is expected to expand to more banks, users, and locations, in addition to more apps. Once officially introduced across India as legal tender, the digital rupee is expected to reduce operational costs of managing physical cash, improve financial inclusion, and ensure resilience and efficiency payment transactions.
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