The RBI plans to advance Project Sa-Mudra to modernise currency management systems and significantly expand the use of Central bank digital currency (CBDC) to enable more efficient cross-border payments as part of its medium-term strategy framework ‘Utkarsh 2029’.
The framework also prioritises scaling up the Unified Lending Interface (ULI) to improve access to credit, particularly for underserved segments.
The framework (for the period April 2026 to March 2029) is based on six pillars — robust regulations, customer centricity and inclusive finance, competitive markets, effective technology, future-ready organisation and Global India.
The RBI seeks to develop frameworks for use of emerging technologies such as AI and Quantum in the financial sector.
Under regulations, the Central bank wants to minimise procedural redundancies, empower regulated entities with greater operational flexibility, encourage responsible innovation in present and emerging realms of the financial system.
By scaling up ULI, RBI is seeking to enhance access to the financial system, reduce lending costs and promote inclusive credit delivery.
Underscoring the interconnectedness in the financial system, the Bank intends to review and enhance the system-wide contagion risk assessment.
Under the competitive markets pillar, the RBI will focus on deliverables that aim at reducing turnaround time of auctions, strengthening pricing transparency in the G-Secs market, and enhancing retail access to markets.
The bank will be leveraging technology in various areas of its operations such as making the interface with regulated entities and citizens electronic and eliminate paper and / or email-based interactions. Furthermore, all internal processes shall be end-to-end digitalised.
Currency management module is being augmented to digitalise manual processes and physical registers.
Through cyber risk capacity building, issuing a framework on the use of AI in the financial sector, expanding asset tokenisation and setting up Digital and AI sandboxes, the bank aims to promote responsible innovation and mindful use of technology in the financial sector.
“The bank endeavours to foster greater cooperation with the rest of the world by promoting the implementation of the UPI stack in other countries to modernise the payment infrastructure, augmenting international trade settlement in INR, expanding cross-border CBDC arrangements, and adopting global standards to enhance global competitiveness,” per the Utkarsh document.
RBI emphasised that this strategy framework is an integral part of the roadmap to further the rupee’s global integration, extend UPI to other countries, and expand bilateral and multilateral CBDC arrangements.
Published on April 10, 2026