Key takeaways
- Sberbank, TBank and Tochka Bank are now part of the digital ruble pilot program.
- By July 2025, major Russian banks will have to support digital ruble functionality or face fines from the CBR.
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Sberbank, Russia’s largest lender, has joined the digital ruble pilot program along with TBank and Tochka Bank, according to a statement from the Central Bank of Russia (CBR) reported by Interfax on December 28.
The program previously included 12 credit organizations, and it is hoped that 14 to 15 more banks will be integrated in 2025, Olga Skorobogatova, former first deputy governor of the CBR, said in an October statement.
With the participation of three new banks, the program now includes 15 credit organizations, adding to existing participants such as VTB, Alfa-Bank, DOM.RF Bank, Ingosstrakh Bank, Gazprombank, Ak Bars Bank, MTS Bank, Promsvyazbank, Sovcombank. , Sinara Bank, TKB Bank and Russian Agricultural Bank.
A total of 22 banks have signed agreements with the central bank and are preparing their systems for the project, according to the report.
The digital ruble, which represents the third form of Russian national currency alongside cash and non-cash money, began its pilot phase with real digital rubles in August 2023. The central bank expanded the tests from 600 to 9,000 participants in October 2024.
From July 2025, major Russian banks will need to support digital ruble functionality for their customers. The central bank announced in September that banks must allow their customers to “open and top up digital ruble accounts, make transfers and accept digital rubles in their infrastructure.” Small financial institutions will implement these capabilities in the coming years.
Banks that fail to prepare on time will face fines from the CBR. The central bank aims to make the digital ruble widely accessible, allowing citizens and businesses to “use it freely on an equal footing with cash and non-cash funds.”
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