Putin signs digital ruble into law

MOSCOW. July 24 (Interfax) - Russian President Vladimir Putin signed the law on the introduction of the digital ruble in Russia, with the document now available on the website of the official publication of legal acts.

The State Duma adopted law on the introduction of a third version of the Russian national currency on July 11 and the Federation Council approved it on July 19. Its main provisions will come into force on August 1, 2023. In addition, a related law was also signed, which makes the necessary amendments to the Civil Code.

Earlier, the head of the Central Bank, Elvira Nabiullina, reported that the regulator intended to launch a pilot project with real digital rubles in August. The Bank of Russia plans to scale up the digital ruble in 2025.

"We really need this pilot to set up the entire system and check its continuity... Only when we make sure that everything works smoothly will we decide on additional scaling for the digital ruble. According to our assessment, this can happen starting in 2025," Nabiullina said during a government meeting on Wednesday.

The pilot will begin with the participation of clients from 13 banks, during which the participants will test opening and closing digital wallets, their replenishment and transfers between individuals, as well as payment for goods and services in digital rubles using a QR code. At the first stage, payment will be tested by 30 trade and service enterprises in 11 cities, which were previously selected by the banks and the Central Bank. Then the range of operations and participants will expand.