The Reserve Bank of India is witnessing significant acceleration in the adoption of its Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) and Unified Lending Interface (ULI) platforms, according to Rohit Jain, Executive Director at RBI. As reported by Business Standard, Jain emphasized that these technologies are moving beyond pilot phases into actual operational use. "We are making good progress. The adoption is increasing. They are not pilots, they are actually on the ground being used," Jain stated, clarifying that "CBDC is actually being used for actual transactions. It is only for namesake that it is a pilot." The central bank continues to follow up with banks to increase use cases for both CBDC and ULI, with expectations of much greater usage and popularity in the period ahead. However, because the technology is still being tested and various adoption methods are being evaluated, it continues to be called a pilot phase. As per BasisPointInsight.com, these are not pilots in the sense that they are merely experimental systems, but "actually on the ground and being used" with law-enforcement agencies and regulated entities making the best possible effort to restore money to victims of fraud.
The RBI is actively expanding the use cases for both CBDC and ULI platforms to drive wider adoption. According to Business Standard reports, the central bank is working with banks to widen adoption of both CBDC and ULI, while engaging with state governments to promote the lending platform. ULI has onboarded 64 lenders — 41 banks and 23 non-banking financial companies (NBFCs) — in 2025, up from 36 a year earlier. The platform now supports more than 136 data services, growing from just over 50 a year ago, covering 12 different loan journeys including authentication tools, land records, satellite data, and credit guarantee information. The expanded applications include cross-border transactions, specific government-directed uses, and transfers to particular beneficiary segments, which are being expanded to increase adoption and usage across multiple sectors. As per BasisPointInsight.com, there are various use cases being expanded, including cross-border applications, specific government-directed uses, and transfers to particular segments, which should lead to increased adoption and usage.
State government participation is playing a crucial role in ULI's expansion. As reported by Business Standard, 12 states have digitised their land records to facilitate ULI adoption, with land records from eight states integrated with the platform as of December 2024. The RBI is maintaining constant dialogue with state governments to increase adoption of the platform, with expectations of significant interest from different state governments to use CBDC and ULI for various schemes. This state-level integration is expected to significantly broaden the platform's reach and utility across different regions, with a lot of interest being shown by different state governments in using CBDC and ULI for different schemes. The central bank continues to engage with state governments to increase the usage of these digital infrastructure platforms.
The RBI is actively expanding CBDC use cases to drive wider adoption across multiple sectors. According to Business Standard reports, the central bank is focusing on cross-border transactions, government schemes, and targeted transfers to specific beneficiary segments. These expanded applications are expected to significantly broaden CBDC's utility beyond its initial person-to-person and person-to-merchant transactions. The platform, launched in December 2022 as a digital form of sovereign currency, has steadily expanded to include cross-border payments and programmable transfers. The central bank continues to test and check how these technologies perform under Indian conditions, with if everything goes according to plan, we are targeting the beginning of the next financial year for circulation of the CBDC. As per BasisPointInsight.com, there are various use cases being expanded, including cross-border applications, specific government-directed uses and transfers to particular segments, which are being expanded to increase adoption and usage.
ULI, launched in 2023 as the RBI's digital public infrastructure for credit, operates on a model similar to the successful Unified Payments Interface (UPI). As reported by Business Standard, the platform enables lenders to access verified borrower information from multiple public and private data sources through standardised application programming interfaces (APIs). This infrastructure is designed to reduce loan processing time and improve access to credit, particularly in agriculture and other underserved segments. The platform's growth from just over 50 data services to more than 136 demonstrates the expanding scope of available information and services, with the RBI continuing to expand various use cases, which should lead to increased adoption and usage across different sectors and applications.
