Major Russian Companies ‘Will Be Forced to Accept Digital Ruble Payments’
Major Russian companies will be forced to accept digital ruble payments as of October 2026, a new report has claimed.
Per the news agency Interfax, smaller firms will likely have to follow suit and accept the CBDC by October 2027.
Interfax said a “source familiar with the situation” confirmed that government and Central Bank officials want to amend the nation’s law “on the protection of consumer rights.”
The source also claimed that the first batch of firms would comprise vendors (including data and service providers) with an annual revenue of above $330,000.
This group must begin accepting CBDC pay no later than October 1, 2026. Companies with an annual revenue of $220,000 to $330,000 will have an additional year to adopt.
However, smaller firms may be exempt from the new rules. The media outlet noted that companies with an annual revenue of under $55,000 will not be obliged to accept CBDC payments at all.
The bank and the Kremlin have prior form. They used a “similar approach” to the Mir payments system, which debuted in 2017.
The amendment will also be bundled with provisions for the Faster Payments System (SBP), another Central Bank project.
In the bank’s own words, SBP “allows individuals to instantly transfer funds to each other using mobile phone numbers, pay for purchases, pay utility bills, and make a wide variety of other transfers.”
Larger firms will need to adopt SBP pay by October 1 this year. Medium-sized companies will be given until October 1, 2025.
Interfax reported that it had seen an accompanying note from the Central Bank that read:
“This bill provides for a staged approach. It will provide merchants with the ability to make payments using SBP and digital rubles. And it will let merchants prepare for the
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