Indian Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has underscored the urgency of preparing for the integration of stablecoins, sparking renewed discussions about digital currencies. During the 2025 Global Fintech Festival, Pine Labs CEO Amrish Rau and Sahil Kini, CEO of the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) Innovation Hub, explored the potential impact of programmable digital currencies on India’s financial landscape. Rau emphasized the potential efficiency and transparency gains from restricting fund usage with programmable currencies. Meanwhile, Kini highlighted India’s central bank digital currency’s capability to handle task-specific payments and the RBI’s pilot program for targeted subsidies. However, he cautioned that stablecoins might undermine control by central banks. Both executives stressed the strength of India’s fintech infrastructure as a foundation for developing programmable currencies, while also questioning the need for stablecoins amidst the rapid advancement of local payment systems.