After several years of test work, the large-scale introduction of the digital ruble began in Russia on September 1 this year. The process will take place in stages: first, Russia’s largest banks will start offering digital ruble transactions, and then by September 2028, all credit organizations registered in the country will have to offer digital rubles.
Image source: Bank of Russia.
Recall that the digital ruble is third form The Russian national currency operates in the same way as cash and non-cash. In essence, the digital ruble is an improved “cashless” technology whose task is to exclude intermediaries in the form of banks from the transaction process.
Personal use of the digital ruble is voluntary. To deposit and withdraw the most modern forms of currency, you need to open a corresponding digital wallet on a central bank platform. This is done entirely manually via the banking application connected to the system – no automatic creation of a digital wallet is provided. Once you open your digital wallet, you will be able to spend your digital rubles through your banking app. Using the digital ruble is technically similar to paying through the Faster Payment System. The replenishment amount of a personal digital ruble account is currently limited to 300,000 rubles per month.
It should be noted that the key feature of the digital ruble is the transparency of transfers. If the state forces (and will force) its companies to sign government contracts with private and other contractors only in digital rubles, this could significantly curb corruption. It’s still hard to say why ordinary individuals would need a new form of national currency, since the vast majority of their purchases are household goods and daily necessities. Just trying it out of curiosity.
