Draft Bill on Digital Ruble Submitted to Russian Parliament

• The members of State Duma seek to add CBDC-related terminology to the legislation.
• The real-world consumer transactions and testing will begin in April 2023.

Draft legislation on the digital ruble, the CBDC issued by Russia’s monetary authority, has been submitted by a group of Russian legislators headed by the Chairman of the Financial Market Committee Anatoly Aksakov. Moreover, the paper proposes amendments to the law that would pave the way for its implementation.

The bill’s explanatory notes, as reported by the crypto page of the Russian business news portal RBC, state that it would be used primarily to create the necessary payment infrastructure for the digital ruble. The backers of this measure think it would provide people and organizations in Russia easier access to cheap and quick international money transfers.

Real-world Consumer Transactions Next

Furthermore, the members of the State Duma seek to add CBDC-related terminology to the legislation. It will be “On the National Payment System,” among other changes to current laws that are proposed. According to the new regulations, the Bank of Russia would be responsible for managing the CBDC system on its own. They also lay out the steps necessary to create digital ruble wallets and get access to the network.

Moreover, the position of the digital ruble as the official currency of the Russian Federation has been codified. By an amendment to the statute “On Currency Regulation and Currency Control.” Which also classifies CBDCs issued by the central banks of other countries as foreign currencies.

In October 2020, the Russian Central Bank unveiled plans for a digital currency, and by December 2021, a prototype platform had been developed. As of January 2022, it is well into the pilot phase. The regulatory body said in May that real-world consumer transactions and testing will begin in April 2023.