Bank of Russia to Pilot Digital Ruble Settlements in 2023 – Finance Bitcoin News

Russia’s monetary authority intends to conduct the first settlements with the digital ruble next year, its governor announced this week. The official spoke to Russian legislators and highlighted the importance of the currency’s role in Russia due to sanctions.

Russia will test the digital ruble in settlements and international payments

The full launch of the digital ruble, Russia’s central bank digital currency (CBDC), should take place before 2030, according to the approved Financial Market Development Strategy of the Ministry of Finance. Elvira Nabiullina, chair of Central Bank of Russia, announced that the CBR plans to test it in settlements by 2023. Tass quoted her further:

The prototype for the digital ruble was quickly developed and is now being tested with banks. Next year we plan to pilot settlements within the real economy.

CBR announced that the CBR had begun trials of the digital ruble in January. In mid-February, they also reported on the first successful transactions between wallets. Five banks are participating at the moment. Seven more will follow the experiment in the next months.

Nabiullina said that the digital ruble will open up new possibilities for Russia and its citizens as well as businesses. The government will use it to make targeted payments in support of certain economic sectors and social sphere. Transfers between individuals will be free of charge, while payments for goods and services may be subject to a small commission of 0.4 – 0.7%.

The governor spoke to the members of lower parliament and stressed that digital currencies will have a unique role in a time when Russia is subject to unprecedented Western sanctions. Not only will the CBDC facilitate settlements in Russia, but it is also expected that its partners can make cross-border payments.

The head of Bank of Russia expressed her hope that Russian deputies will adopt the necessary legal amendments to set the ground for the digital ruble’s commercial implementation. This is her call after Olga Skorobogatova (First Deputy Governor) earlier in the week stressed the need to move forward with digital ruble projects and promised that they will not delay them.

Are you positive Russia will accelerate the use of the digital ruble in its implementation? Please share your thoughts in the comment section.

Lubomir Tatsev

Lubomir Tassev is a journalist from tech-savvy Eastern Europe who likes Hitchens’s quote: “Being a writer is what I am, rather than what I do.” Besides crypto, blockchain and fintech, international politics and economics are two other sources of inspiration.