Russia Expands Digital Ruble Pilot with New Bank Participants

Russia expands its digital ruble pilot with Sberbank, TBank, and Tochka, as more banks join efforts for CBDC testing and security.

Sberbank, TBank, and Tochka Bank have officially joined the Russian digital ruble pilot program. The Central Bank of Russia announced the news on its website. The country’s central bank digital currency (CBDC) will now be tested by these banks.

In the pilot, 12 other banks took part, formerly. Some of these banks included large institutions such as Alfa-Bank, VTB and Gazprombank. But they also started testing the digital ruble earlier on, with some of them already on the program since late November 2024. The pilot is expected to include 22 banks. The Central Bank has agreements with these institutions. Now, they are calibrating their systems for that project.

A new form of broadcasting the Russian national currency is a digital ruble. Cash and non-cash money will exist alongside it. The pilot was begun by the Central Bank in August 2023. Starting July 1st, 2025, the plan is to roll out the digital ruble in stages first to private individuals. Before that, systemically important credit institutions (SICI) should have begun to provide digital ruble transactions to their customers. The Central Bank said that banks that fail to prepare themselves in time risk being fined.

Sberbank, TBank, Tochka Join Russia in Digital Ruble Testing

In the Russian financial sector some important players are Sberbank, TBank, and Tochka Bank. The largest bank in the country is Sberbank. TBank (Tinkoff Bank) is rapidly growing and systemically important as well. Tochka Bank concentrates on digital banking services, providing them mostly for entrepreneurs and small businesses.

The digital ruble pilot is just one in a series of developments. The Russian State Duma passed a bill to tighten anti-laundering measures in the digital ruble platform in October 2024. The banks can block suspicious transactions, under the bill. The new law will start to apply on January 1, 2025.

It is all part of Russia’s continuing efforts to modernize its financial system. These targets designed the digital ruble to serve, specifically, as a means to increase efficiency and security in conducting financial transactions. Russia is closer to launching its central bank digital currency, as more banks join a pilot.