Russian lawmakers pass digital ruble bill, expected to take effect on September 1, 2026

PANews reported on July 17 that according to Cryptonews, Russian lawmakers voted to pass a digital ruble bill, stipulating that the central bank's digital currency will be launched in September 2026. Previously, the State Duma had passed a law on the "gradual introduction" of the digital ruble, which will then be submitted to the upper house for approval and then to President Putin for signature. However, these two steps are just formalities, and the law will take effect on September 1, 2026, which is the new date after the central bank postponed its original summer 2025 launch plan.

The law includes a timetable for the implementation of the central bank's digital currency in the regulations: starting from September 1, 2026, companies with annual revenue of 120 million rubles or more must provide services, medium-sized companies have an additional year to comply, small companies and start-ups must comply before September 1, 2028, and foreign banks and companies are also subject to compliance. At the same time, it is stipulated that digital ruble QR codes must be used to pay for goods and services, large companies are obliged to provide payment options, some small companies do not have to join, and merchants without network coverage or with annual revenue of less than 5 million rubles do not need to accept it.