India is stepping up efforts to expand the global use of the rupee through bilateral local currency arrangements, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Sanjay Malhotra said on Wednesday, while also highlighting the growing scale of the country’s central bank digital currency (CBDC) pilot.Speaking at the Financial Congress in St Petersburg, Russia, alongside Bank of Russia Governor Elvira Nabiullina, Malhotra said the RBI has signed memoranda of understanding (MoUs) with several countries to promote the use of local currencies in cross-border trade.
“We have MoUs with many countries to promote the use of local currencies — the rupee on our side and the local currency of the other country,” he said.
Malhotra also said the RBI’s digital rupee (e₹) pilot, which remains in the testing phase, has now reached 12 million users. Since its launch, the CBDC pilot has processed more than 175 million transactions worth nearly ₹400 billion (around $4.8 billion).
???????????? India pushes rupee internationalisation: RBI Governor”We have MOUs with many countries to promote the use of local currencies — the rupee on our side and the local currency of the other country,” said Sanjay Malhotra in St. Petersburg, Russia. pic.twitter.com/Fg25PzsOt3— Sputnik India (@Sputnik_India) July 1, 2026Rupee invoicing gathers pace
The governor’s remarks come weeks after the RBI said the internationalisation of the rupee has continued to gather momentum, with the use of the currency in import and export invoicing rising steadily over the past few years.In its Annual Report 2025–26, the central bank said broader use of the rupee in international trade could reduce exchange rate risks, lower dependence on foreign exchange reserves held in convertible currencies and strengthen India’s external sector.Also Read: Rupee internationalisation gathers pace as INR trade use expands: RBIAccording to the RBI, there has been a marked increase in INR-based trade settlement since July 2022. Between August 2022 and July 2025, imports invoiced in rupees recorded a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 20.9%, while exports grew at a 12.7% CAGR.In absolute terms, import invoicing in rupees rose to ₹2.85 lakh crore in FY26 from ₹2.60 lakh crore in FY25, while export invoicing increased to ₹3.27 lakh crore from ₹3.07 lakh crore over the same period.The RBI has also said that the growing international use of the rupee has encouraged greater trade invoicing in other emerging market currencies, although it noted that the currency remained under depreciation pressure during FY26 amid global trade uncertainty, geopolitical tensions and foreign portfolio investor outflows.
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