A year ago, the Bank of Russia set July 2025 as the date for the first launch phase of its digital ruble central bank digital currency (CBDC). Now the central bank is delaying the roll out. It follows resistance from merchants, a major banking association, and its largest bank, Sber.
The big bank was excluded from the first wave of banks involved in the pilot, so it only joined this January, a year later than planned. Perhaps its inclusion was delayed to avoid it dominating trials, but that’s speculation. The reality is that six months from the first pilot to launch is rather short for a bank.
Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina announced the delay at a meeting with the Association of Russian Banks (ASROS). However, she said that the pilots are progressing well.
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