MUMBAI, Oct. 2 -- To strengthen the rupee's global footprint, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Wednesday rolled out measures to facilitate trade and investment in the Indian currency. The RBI plans to introduce reference rates for currencies of India's biggest trading partners, allow Indian banks to lend in rupees to neighbouring countries and offer foreign partners more investment options for Special Rupee Vostro Account (SRVA) balances. The announcements came alongside the central bank's monetary policy statement. As widely expected, the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) kept the benchmark repo rate unchanged at 5.50% for the second straight meeting and maintained a neutral stance. The rupee rose 0.1% to 88.7075 a dollar on Wednesday. It had touched a record low of 88.8050 on Tuesday. Financial Benchmarks India Limited, which currently publishes reference rates for the dollar, euro, pound sterling and the Japanese yen against the rupee, will soon add select currencies of India's major trading partners. This is expected to deepen the onshore forex market and make trade settlements more efficient by reducing multiple currency conversions. Indian authorised dealer banks and their overseas branches can now lend in rupees to residents and banks in Bhutan, Nepal, and Sri Lanka. The move is designed to ease trade transactions and ensure Indian rupee liquidity is accessible to partner economies. Amendments under Foreign Exchange Management Act will be notified shortly. Market participants say this could reduce transaction costs and stabilize trade settlements, but its short-term impact on the rupee is expected to be limited. "Broadly, I would say that there would not be any immediate impact on the rupee because internationalisation of rupee is a journey and it will be a decade long journey. These are important steps but not as big enough to change the course of rupee in the short-term," Ritesh Bhansali, deputy chief executive officer at Mecklai Financial Services said. RBI also expanded investment avenues for balances held in SRVAs, introduced in July 2022 to facilitate invoicing, payment, and settlement of exports and imports in rupees. Balances can be invested in corporate bonds and commercial papers, in addition to government securities. Analysts say this will make SRV accounts more attractive to foreign banks and companies, providing better returns while supporting India's corporate debt market....