By Elena Fabrichnaya
MOSCOW Russia will begin piloting its digital rouble with consumers on Aug. 15 after a lengthy testing phase with banks, the central bank said on Wednesday, as Moscow looks to widen the scope of its cross-border payments.
Russia, like many countries, has been developing a central bank digital currency (CBDC) - digital tokens issued by central banks - over the last couple of years in a bid to modernise its financial system and head off cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin.
Eleven countries, including a number in the Caribbean, and Nigeria, have already CBDCs, according to research by the U.S.-based Atlantic Council think tank, while many more, including China, are engaged in large-scale pilot testing.
"We expect to test operations with real customers," the central bank's First Deputy Governor Olga Skorobogatova said on Wednesday.
The pilot test will include opening digital wallets, making purchases with digital roubles and transfers between around 600 customers and 30 companies from 11 cities.
The scheme will eventually enable Russia to develop cross-border payments with other countries that issue digital currencies, Skorobogatova said.
Moscow has faced a pressing need to develop its payments infrastructure since wide-ranging western sanctions in opposition to its actions in Ukraine blocked Russia from large swathes of the global financial system.
The digital rouble is scheduled to be widely introduced in 2025. Next year, the central bank will expand the list of participants, with another 19 banks keen to join the pilot, Skorobogatova said.
(Reporting by Elena Fabrichnaya; Writing by Alexander Marrow; Editing by Louise Heavens)
