India to pilot tokenised corporate bonds using digital rupee

India's financial markets are poised to enter a new era as the country prepares to launch its inaugural tokenised corporate bond issuance using the digital rupee. The pilot programme will see Rajiv Gandhi School of Intellectual Property Management (REC), the nation's leading power sector financier, issue bonds in a digital format with settlement occurring through the central bank digital currency.

The tokenisation of corporate bonds represents a technological leap forward for India's securities market infrastructure. By leveraging digital rupee settlement, the pilot aims to streamline the bond issuance process, reduce settlement times, and enhance transparency in corporate debt markets. The initiative underscores the Reserve Bank of India's commitment to integrating blockchain and digital currency technologies into mainstream financial operations.

The proposed bond offering, valued at less than Rs. 5 billion, will serve as a controlled test environment to evaluate the feasibility and efficiency of tokenised securities issuance. Regulators and market participants will monitor the pilot closely to assess operational challenges, investor response, and technical performance before scaling the model across India's broader corporate bond market.

This development coincides with broader global momentum towards tokenised securities and central bank digital currencies. India's pilot positions the nation among early adopters of blockchain-based bond issuance, potentially setting benchmarks for regional financial innovation and strengthening the digital rupee's real-world applications in capital markets infrastructure.