Russia’s Central Bank Chief Elvira Nabiullina discussed plans to roll out a digital ruble at a meeting with the Russian banking association on Thursday. The original plan was to make the digital currency available to everyone in the country by July 1, 2025. The digital ruble is intended to enable Russian citizens to create digital wallets, make transfers and pay for goods and services.
According to Russian state media, Nabiullina stated, “Our intention is to start the wide-scale introduction of the digital ruble a bit later than originally planned, after we have worked out all the details in the pilot project and consulted with banks on the economic model that is most attractive for their customers, businesses and people.”
A new timeline for the widespread introduction of the currency will be announced later, Nabiullina said, adding that the pilot project for the digital currency is progressing well, with around 1,700 citizens and approximately 30 businesses involved.
Nabiullina also mentioned that the digital ruble offers more possibilities for smart contracts, which are currently showing interest from banks, businesses and the government. “We want to make this area a key part of the project’s development” she said.
Smart contracts, also known as intelligent contracts, are based on computer protocols and are a type of digital agreement written in code that is stored on a blockchain. The conditions of the agreement between buyer and seller are directly written in code lines.
Russia’s Central Bank began working on a digital ruble in 2021 and a law on the digital currency was adopted in the summer of 2023. According to the document, the digital ruble, along with cash and the ruble as book money, is the third national currency form. A real-life experiment with the currency started in the country in mid-August 2023.