The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has proposed developing a plug-and-play system for cross-border payments to improve interoperability between countries, Cointelegraph reported.

RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das said at a recent conference that ensuring interoperability as a key design element will lead to maximum efficiency gains.

However, countries may tend to design their own systems based on domestic needs, which becomes a major challenge in achieving coordination and interoperability. Das explained that this challenge can be overcome by developing plug-and-play systems while maintaining the sovereignty of countries.

India has made some progress and is developing plug-and-play systems for the benefit of the international community.

Das noted that interoperability between traditional payment systems and CBDC systems is key, although actual implementation may face challenges and the use of international technical standards will be needed to overcome technical barriers.

Das also mentioned that retail cross-border transactions still have multiple layers of problems, adding costs and delays.

Cross-border payment efficiency is an important topic for the G20 and international standard-setting bodies, and Das said that countries have carried out many experiments and initiatives in bilateral and multilateral arrangements.

India will assume the G20 presidency in December 2022, and digital asset regulation is one of its agenda. The Indian Ministry of Economic Affairs is preparing a consultation document on cryptocurrency legislation, which is expected to be released in September or October.