The Russian Central Bank plans to expand the digital ruble pilot project starting in September: 19 banks are ready to join the initiative.
According to reports from the local newspaper Pravda, the Russian central bank has announced that it will expand its digital ruble pilot project in September. Starting from September 1st, the project will integrate the ability to conduct transactions with real money to purchase goods and services.
Olga Skorobogatova, First Deputy Governor of the bank, stated that currently 12 banks are involved, with another 19 set to join the project. She also reported a significant number of requests from citizens and businesses willing to use the digital ruble.
The project was launched just over a year ago, involving about 600 individuals in 11 Russian cities. Subsequently, the project was marginally expanded to include the Moscow Metro and a small group of large banks. More recently, the central bank declared its intention to include a second group of banks. It then clarified the expansion of the project, which will involve up to 9,000 individuals and 1,200 legal entities by the end of the year.
According to internal sources and statements from bank officials, the project is expected to develop actively in the second half of 2024 and throughout 2025. The expansion will include a variety of transactions and services to comprehensively evaluate the effectiveness and efficiency of the digital ruble as a payment instrument.
