In Pics: Here's a glimpse of the digital rupee with all you need to know about it

The central bank digital currency is a virtual twin of the Rupee, launched as a currency regulated by the Reserve Bank of India.

Introduced to consumers through a pilot project, the Digital Rupee was developed after RBI's opposition to cryptocurrencies.

The digital rupee was launched in December 2022, to a limited number of people in Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru and Bhubaneswar.

Initially piloted by SBI, ICICI, Yes Bank and IDFC First, the Digital Rupee project will now reach 9 more cities via 5 more banks.

The e-rupee is a token which represents the value of the denomination it has been modelled after, and can be stored in e-wallets on smartphones.

The transactions for the e-rupee can be person to person or between consumers and merchants, via QR codes.

The digital cash can also be turned into other forms of money such as deposits in banks, and doesn't accumulate interest, while offering the same safety as physical currency.

Among retailers, Mukesh Ambani's Reliance has become the first firm to accept payment in the form on digital rupees in January 2023.

As of now, around 50,000 Indians are using digital rupees for transactions, while 10,000 merchants are accepting it, across four major Indian cities.