“No one is going to forcibly force anyone into the digital ruble. They want it, they use it, they don’t use it. But we do expect it to be more convenient, cheaper for both people and businesses, and they will start using it. This is a new opportunity,” Nabiullina said.
Earlier, the head of the Russian Central Bank said that the widespread use of state digital currency will be possible from the beginning of 2025. She added that the government will test transfers between legal entities as well as smart contracts.
Earlier in July, the State Duma passed in the second and final third reading a bill to introduce the digital ruble into the banking system. The CBR, which is assigned the status of CBDC platform operator, now has the right to refuse any commercial bank to conduct a transaction if it realizes that the transaction is being conducted without the consent of the customer;
Anatoly Aksakov, chairman of the State Duma’s Financial Markets Committee, said minors will not be able to take possession of their parents’ digital rubles and buy whatever they want.