Russia Launches Digital Ruble on Sept. 1 With Crypto Payments Still Banned

TL;DR

• Russia will launch the digital ruble on September 1, with MTS, Rostelecom, MegaFon, Wildberries and Ozon among the first adopters.
• The law in force since July 2025 requires large retailers to accept the CBDC from that date, with staggered deadlines until 2028 for smaller businesses.
• Surveys reveal public resistance: 51% do not want to use the digital ruble and 67% reject receiving it as salary.

Russia will take a definitive step in adopting its CBDC on September 1, when major telecommunications and e-commerce companies begin processing payments in digital rubles. The launch will extend a pilot that had been developing in stages and consolidates the State’s commitment to a digital payment system under exclusive government control, while keeping in place the ban on using cryptocurrencies as a means of payment.

Three of the country’s four main mobile operators confirmed their participation to Vedomosti: MTS, Rostelecom and MegaFon. MTS will process payments through its MTS Pay module, where users will be able to select the “Digital Ruble” option from the My MTS app. Rostelecom is working with an unidentified banking entity and will begin with specific e-commerce transactions, later incorporating recurring billing. MegaFon presents it simply as an additional payment option. VimpelCom, operator of Beeline, declined to comment.

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