“It will be used as a backup, not as the only option,” the expert told Ridus.
“As Viktor Tsoi sang: ‘But if you’ve got a pack of cigarettes in your pocket, that means things aren’t so bad today.’ The digital ruble is also a kind of ‘pack of cigarettes,’ needed just in case,” the publication’s source continued.
Noting that the Central Bank, to protect itself from potential sanctions, had hidden on its website the list of banks that will begin using the digital ruble starting September 1, the expert suggested that under current conditions, this payment method “will not be the top priority” for the Central Bank.
According to Kogan, the digital ruble will likely “remain in the experimental phase for now,” but will eventually make its way into the private sector.
