Does Information Nudge Make the e-Rupee More Adoptable? Examining the Adoption and Willingness to Shift to Digital Currency in India

Banks around the globe are rapidly progressing towards the adoption of digital currency. However, its adoption rate has been consistently low among both emerging and advanced economies. This study examines the user adoption of the Indian digital currency, the e-Rupee, based on a primary survey conducted between July 2025 and September 2025 of 751 respondents. The study adopted a blend of TAM and nudge theory for the first time in the digital currency domain, using the stated preference method in finance literature to understand the willingness to shift to the e-Rupee in India. Using binary logit regression, we test two hypotheses. The results show that apart from socioeconomic predictors, adoption of the e-Rupee is significantly influenced by digital financial literacy. With respect to the willingness to shift to the e-Rupee, the study found TAM constructs like perceived convenience and perceived belief in the study as the key predictors. Unlike the current literature, our study finds that trust is not a significant predictor of e-Rupee adoption. This highlights the credibility of the central bank of the country and the future growth of its digital currency. The findings highlight the importance of digital financial literacy and behavioral intentions, rather than technical viability, as the key factors in digital currency adoption in India.