The Bank of Russia is planning to tax all central bank digital currency (CBDC) transactions. From what has been leaked, however, the fees should be lower than those charged for the bank transfer. Transactions carried out with the Russian CBDC, the digital ruble, will not in fact be higher than those carried out through the Russian Faster Payments System (FPS), a system of instant interbank transfers. The FPS fee scheme allows users to transfer up to $ 1,360 with zero fees and are charged only 0.5% with amounts transferred beyond that threshold. So far, there are no important details on the digital ruble, as the format for the launch of the CBDC is under discussion within the Russian central bank. However, it is known that the Bank of Russia plans to allow the digital ruble to be stored in a special crypto wallet. Prime says the central bank plans to launch a prototype of the platform in January next year.
The Bank of Russia first revealed its plans to develop the digital ruble prototype earlier this year. Therefore, he planned to complete the prototype by the end of this year or next year, without setting any specific deadline. However, the central bank's interest in a digital version of the ruble was first officially confirmed in October last year, when it released a consultation paper, describing the digital ruble as an "additional form of money alongside cash and non-cash ". Although the central bank has decided to proceed with the development of the prototype based on the initial models, it has faced some criticism from the association of Russian banks and fintech companies. They pointed out the disadvantages of such a blockchain-based fiat model and raised concerns about its use by scammers.