Russia’s Finance Ministry has made its first salary payments in digital rubles, extending the country’s central bank digital currency from testing into regular government payroll as of Oct. 1.
The move follows earlier trials of federal budget spending. According to the ministry, the Finance Ministry and the Federal Treasury used nearly 16 million rubles in digital currency during 2025 pilot transactions for selected salaries, stipends and government contract payments.
From pilot spending to regular use
The ministry said the earlier transactions were designed to check whether the Bank of Russia’s infrastructure could support public-sector spending before broader operational use. Those tests covered several types of budget-related payments rather than payroll alone.
The Bank of Russia has described its 2025 pilot as including core transfers between individuals and businesses, budget payments and several kinds of smart contracts. The Oct. 1 salary payments therefore mark a further step in bringing the digital ruble into routine government financial operations.
Budget access widened in 2026
The use of digital rubles for budget spending was expanded from January 2026, according to the Finance Ministry’s Oct. 2 announcement. From that point, federal state-owned, budget-funded and autonomous institutions were allowed to use digital rubles for eligible spending.
The ministry also said some institutions were able to accept payments for services through the same system, broadening the CBDC’s role beyond internal state disbursements.
Central bank prepared payroll rails in advance
Before the first regular salary payments, the Bank of Russia had already set the terms for payroll processing on the platform. A board decision dated June 19 introduced tariffs specifically for digital-ruble transfers from companies to individuals for salaries and other employment-related payments.
Under that schedule, payroll transfers will carry a zero platform fee through the end of 2026. Beginning on Jan. 1, 2027, the central bank’s published tariff schedule provides compensation of 67 kopecks per completed payroll instruction to participating institutions, with a minimum amount applying to each payment register.
What is confirmed next
For now, the confirmed development is that digital rubles have moved from limited budget testing into actual salary payments for some Finance Ministry employees. The official timeline also shows that the framework for broader public-sector use is already in place for eligible institutions.
The next confirmed stage is the continued use of digital rubles across approved government spending categories under the expanded 2026 budget regime, while the platform’s tariff treatment remains at zero for payroll transfers until the end of the year.
Source: crypto.news