Bank of Russia approves logo, fees for digital ruble

The Bank of Russia’s Board of Directors has approved the logo for the newly unveiled digital ruble, the bank said in a statement.

“It consists of two interlinked elements: the ruble sign and a circle that runs around it, which, on the one hand, evokes the form of a traditional coin, and, on the other hand, reflects the Bank of Russia logo,” the statement reads.

The bank has also approved the fines on digital ruble operations. Payments and transactions in digital ruble will be free for citizens. It is noted that each person or company can open one digital ruble account on the Bank of Russia’s website free of charge.

Businesses will have to pay 0.3% of the total amount when accepting payments in digital rubles (but not more than 1,500 rubles or €15).

The commission for transactions between legal entities will stand at 15 rubles (€0.14) per transaction.

All fees will enter into force on 1 January 2025. The bank introduced a grace period until then, when all digital ruble transactions will be carried out free of charge.

Russian President Vladimir Putin signed the digital ruble bill on 24 July. The Russian ruble will now exist in three forms: cash, non-cash, and digital.

The digital ruble will technically look like a code. Special QR codes will be available to pay for goods and services with the new currency.

The Russian authorities claims that the digital ruble will partially help Russians to bypass sanctions. In particular, negotiations are underway with several countries to integrate digital currencies of the central banks. However, experts doubt that the digital ruble will truly become a solution to sanctions.