Modern-day Yuri Gagarin becomes first Russian to receive salary in digital rubles!
Exciting updates about the Bank of Russia's safe and convenient CBDC
In recent weeks, there have been many thrilling developments surrounding the implementation of Russia’s third form of legal currency, the IMF’s Bank of Russia’s digital ruble.
(An archive of our previous reports about Russia’s CBDC can be found here.)
Let’s jump in!
Friendly politician becomes first person to receive salary in digital rubles
Russia’s Ministry of Finance announced the joyous news on September 17:
The Russian Treasury has made the first payment of wages in digital rubles to a civil servant of the Russian Federation.
The experiment introducing the digital ruble into the budget process was carried out jointly with the Ministry of Finance of Russia and the Bank of Russia.
From January 1, 2026, the Treasury of Russia and the Bank of Russia will provide for the possibility of conducting operations with the digital ruble. It will be possible to transfer funds to accounts in the budget system of the Russian Federation and make various payments from the federal budget.
The trailblazing CBDC recipient was later identified as none other than Anatoly Aksakov, head of the State Duma Committee on Financial Markets.
Aksakov said the transfer went smoothly and praised the State Duma’s accounting office for quickly mastering “the procedure for crediting wages to my digital account at the Central Bank”.
In March, Aksakov argued in favor of issuing social payments in digital rubles so that these funds couldn’t be spent on “alcohol and cigarettes”:
This applies to social payments and other forms of government spending. In my opinion, the benefits in this case outweigh the arguments that it is wrong to issue both free and non-free digital rubles [i.e., digital rubles that are programmed so that they can only be spent on certain goods or services] at the same time. Control is needed; there is no other way.
Truly, a hero of our time.
St. Petersburg tests “smart” parking with digital rubles
Russian media reported on October 8:
VTB is testing the technology of smart contracts that use payment in digital rubles with “smart” parking in St. Petersburg. The project was unveiled at the“Finopolis 2025” forum. As the bank explained, in the future, VTB customers will be able to use an application to create smart contracts — automated transactions that will work when various conditions are met — with this third form of the ruble.
For example, when a car enters a parking lot, the system will automatically read the car’s license plate number and “start the meter” at the corresponding rate, which can vary depending on the duration of the stay, the time of day, or how many cars are currently parked there. When the car leaves the parking lot, the contract will be automatically completed, and the appropriate amount in digital rubles will be deducted from the user.
“Smart contracts are already a familiar routine for business, but they can save a lot of time and get rid of unnecessary hassle for all of us, reducing the time it takes to complete everyday tasks. And in combination with the technology of the digital ruble, everything is becoming even easier and more transparent,” Alexey Okhorzin, Senior Vice President, Head of VTB’s Department of Retail Businesses, said. “The experiment with parking shows this: the client no longer needs to look for a parking machine and stand in line for it, install an app, save a parking ticket, or scan anything on the way out. After leaving the parking lot, the smart contract automatically calculates and deducts the fee, taking into account time and other conditions, without terminals, cards, or apps, even if the user is off the network. In addition, the smart contract will remember the parking lot and activate on the next visit.”
When dangerous conspiracy theorists ask why it is that all the world’s IMF-obedient central banks announced at the exact same time that they were developing CBDCs, now you can answer: to make parking easier.
Majority of Russians are ready to receive their salaries in digital rubles, says very reliable bank survey
68% of Russians are open to being paid in digital rubles, according to the results of a poll conducted by VTB Bank.
However, the same survey claims that 42% of respondents would use digital rubles as much as they would use cash and non-cash rubles … which means that 26% would consent to receiving regular payments in digital rubles that they would only sometimes, or rarely, or maybe never, use? (You can’t earn interest on digital rubles so it’s unclear why anyone wouldn’t spend them as soon as possible.) It’s a mystery.
The survey’s findings contrast sharply with the results of a poll from June, which found that only 6% of Russians were ready to open a digital wallet. A lot can change in four months?
Make of this what you will.
And finally…
Bank of Russia confirms digital ruble will help grandmas send money to their favorite grandsons
The Bank of Russia has been pounding its head against the wall: How can we convince Russian grannies to receive their pensions in digital rubles?
Suddenly, an idea:
Digital rubles received as a pension can not only be used to pay in stores, but also to give money to your beloved grandson without paying any additional fees. This was reported by the Central Bank, answering the question “How do I explain the digital ruble to my grandmother?”
[…]
The Central Bank recalled that transferring money to the bank card of her “favorite grandson” can incur additional costs, as some banks charge commissions. But this will not happen with digital rubles.
“You will not need to pay for transfers with digital rubles, it’s free,” the regulator said.
Okay then.
More like digital rubble. Giving the government complete control over your finances is a prescription for death.
According to a survey conducted this summer, only 3% of Russians say they would like to receive salary in digital roubles. Last year this figure was 7%. People are not stupid.