Russia rolls out digital ruble as Kremlin tightens financial control

"Russia is ready to launch the digital ruble for broad use starting Sept. 1, Central Bank

Governor Elvira Nabiullina said, The Moscow Times reported on July 2.
Starting Sept. 1, all 12 systemically important banks must process digital ruble transactions, and major retailers will also accept the currency as payment. “Technologically, everything is ready. We did a great deal of preparatory work before this stage,” Nabiullina said.
It is unclear which other banks will work with the digital ruble. The Central Bank unexpectedly withheld the list of banks participating in the digital ruble platform." NV