Russia Delays Digital Ruble Launch to 2026

Russia's central bank has postponed the launch of its Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) to 2026, with plans for a phased rollout through 2028. Starting in September 2026, the digital ruble will be available to customers of Russia's largest banks, enabling them to make payments using the digital currency.

In a press release dated June 25, the Bank of Russia outlined that retail clients of large banks (those with annual revenues exceeding ₽120 million or about $1.5 million) will be required to accept digital ruble payments from that date. 

By September 1, 2027, the rule will expand to all other banks with universal licenses and their clients earning over ₽30 million annually. A full rollout is expected by 2028, although smaller merchants with annual sales under ₽5 million will be exempt.

Unlike cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin or Ethereum, the digital ruble will not run on a traditional public blockchain. Instead, it will operate on a hybrid system that incorporates elements of distributed ledger technology but remains under the central control of the Bank of Russia.

While digital ruble transactions will not include perks like loyalty rewards or interest on balances, they are expected to reduce transaction costs for merchants. However, details on how these benefits will materialize are still unclear.

The new timelines mark a significant delay from the initial goal of launching widespread adoption by mid-2025. The Bank of Russia has not provided a specific reason for the delay, but sources close to the process point to difficulties such as the reliance on foreign software, like Oracle, and sanctions that hinder progress.

Additionally, there were concerns about the system’s functionality during power outages, which led to the cancellation of the planned offline payments feature for the digital ruble.

In a 2020 consultation paper, Russia's central bank emphasized that the digital ruble would complement existing cash and non-cash rubles, rather than replacing them. Despite this assurance, there is no certainty that Russia won’t take a similar approach to China, where the digital yuan became mandatory for public sector payrolls starting in 2018.

However, early reports from China suggest that many people still find it challenging to use the digital currency, and like Russia’s upcoming digital ruble, it does not offer interest, leading to mixed results in shifting payments onto state-managed systems.