Several Russian banks may not be ready to support digital ruble transactions by Sept 1; Central Bank to grant deferment until end of 2026

ST. PETERSBURG. June 5 (Interfax) - Several large Russian banks may not be ready to launch digital ruble transactions as of September 1, 2026, so the Central Bank of Russia will allow them to complete the process by the end of 2026, Alla Bakina, director of the Central Bank's payment system department, said.

"We have a possibility that literally several banks, one or two at the most, may not fully complete these measures. I think that we will give these banks until the end of 2026. If it turns out that they do not have time to complete some of the work for objective reasons, then we will consider this and allow them to complete it," Bakina told reporters on the sidelines of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF).

Bakina added that all 12 systemically important banks would be ready to launch digital ruble transactions en masse by September 1. "We have nine additional banks that are significant in the payment services market, and many of them are also progressing well, at a good pace, getting connected, completing their work," she said.

The Central Bank is also working to enable offline transactions with the digital ruble, testing a number of technical solutions.

"I think that we will present a consultative report outlining several solutions by the end of the year or early next year. We will propose these solutions to the market in collaboration with a number of participants," Bakina emphasized.

The digital ruble is the third form of Russian national currency that the Central Bank of Russia plans to issue in addition to existing forms of money, cash and non-cash. The Central Bank has been conducting a pilot project with digital rubles since mid-August 2023. Major banks and trading companies are expected to be required to provide their clients with the ability to conduct transactions with the digital national currency starting from September 1, 2026.