India’s CBDC volumes more than double, value jumps fourfold in April: RBI, ET BFSI

india’s CBDC volumes more than double, value jumps fourfold in April: RBI
India’s digital payment ecosystem continued to demonstrate strong momentum in April 2025, following the year-end expansion in March, according to the Reserve Bank of India’s latest monthly bulletin. Notably, the central bank digital currency (CBDC), or e₹, saw significant traction in both transaction volume and value, highlighting the growing adoption of digital rupee in the financial sector.

“The central bank digital currency-e₹ in circulation continued to gain further traction, with volume more than doubling and value
rising over fourfold (y-o-y) as of the week ended April 18, 2025,: the RBI Bulletin said

Real Time Gross Settlement (RTGS), widely regarded as a barometer of overall economic activity, registered robust double-digit year-on-year (y-o-y) growth in both volume and value terms. Despite intermittent technical issues, all major digital payment modes maintained expansion, underscoring the resilience of India’s digital infrastructure.

Retail payments

Retail payment systems such as the Unified Payments Interface (UPI), National Electronic Funds Transfer (NEFT), and Bharat Bill Payment System (BBPS) also saw continued increases in transactions, reflecting sustained consumer and business adoption. National Electronic Toll Collection (NETC) transactions rose as well, driven by higher vehicular traffic, improved mobility, and increased issuance of FASTags.In the card payments segment, credit card spending reached a peak of Rs 2.01 lakh crore in March 2025. The number of credit cards in circulation rose by 7.94 per cent (y-o-y), pushing the total to 109.8 million.

Overall, digital payments grew 35.0 per cent year-on-year in volume and 17.9 per cent in value in FY 2024–25, compared to 44.3 per cent and 16.4 per cent, respectively, in FY 2023–24.

Importantly, the central bank’s digital rupee—e₹—continued its upward trajectory. As of the week ending April 18, 2025, the volume of e₹ in circulation more than doubled year-on-year, while its transaction value grew more than fourfold. This reflects increasing confidence and usage of the RBI’s digital currency initiative in both retail and wholesale segments.

The continued expansion of digital payments, alongside growing e₹ usage, supports the RBI’s broader push towards a digitally inclusive economy and the gradual evolution of India’s monetary ecosystem.

• Published On May 22, 2025 at 07:00 AM IST

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