PANews reports on April 25th that according to Bitcoin.com, Anna Katamadze, the deputy governor of the Russian Central Bank, announced that the digital ruble payment network is scheduled to be launched in 2026, by which time citizens can use the digital currency for payments through the central bank platform wallet. This timeline is earlier than the industry's previous expectation of 2027.
Technical test progress shows that currently 15 banks, 1,700 citizens, and about 30 enterprises are participating in the pilot. Although the originally planned deployment was postponed in March, the Central Bank Governor Nabiullina emphasized that the delay was not related to pilot progress. It is worth noting that the Russian government has begun to incorporate the digital ruble into the budget payment and subsidy distribution system to enhance the transparency of fund circulation.
