Russia pushing pensioners to ‘digital ruble trap,’ economist says

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The Russian government will eventually force the country’s pensioners to receive their payments in the digital ruble as it seeks to ramp up the adoption of its central bank digital currency (CBDC), a Russian economist has claimed.

Russia kicked off its CBDC pilot last August after President Vladimir Putin signed the digital ruble bill into law. According to the Bank of Russia, the pilot could stretch to 2025, with its phased approach bringing onboard new banks and technical partners in each stage.

One key concern among Russians is that the government would impose the CBDC on them, which the central bank has consistently denied. According to Alexander Razuvaev, a Moscow-based economist and author, pensioners will be the first target group.

“Gradually, pensions will be replaced with digital rubles. In the near future, this is most likely inevitable. So, little by little, pensioners are being driven into the trap of the Central Bank and are being encouraged to switch to a new type of money,” Razuvaev stated.

He added that the trend “will only intensify over time. Technological progress is taking its toll.”

The mandatory usage of the digital ruble has been a concern for Russians since the central bank announced it years ago. In August, the Association of Russian Banks called for formal laws to prevent compulsory usage of the CBDC. Anti-CBDC campaigners have also used these fears as their primary concern in opposing the digital ruble.

However, the Bank of Russia has maintained that the digital ruble will be optional, even for pensioners.

“The Central Bank only advocates the voluntary transfer of pensions to a digital ruble. This is our position. Many people now remember transferring pensions to the MIR card, but many forget that a person had a choice – to receive a pension in cash, by mail or to his account,” Elvira Nabiullina, the head of the bank, stated.

The MIR card is a card payment system established by the central bank, which is now operational in over a dozen countries.

Russians wary of a mandatory digital ruble

Despite the promises, Russians have been wary of being forced to use the digital ruble. Statements from some legislators haven’t helped the situation, such as Anatoly Aksakov’s claim that the CBDC could be programmable.

Aksakov, the State Duma Committee on Financial Markets chairman, claimed that a digital ruble could be designated for specific uses or barred from others. For instance, a parent can program a CBDC account to decline payments for any drugs or alcohol for their kids.

Aksakov admitted that the citizens’ concerns are valid but claimed that the Bank of Russia hasn’t indicated that it wants to use the CBDC to control the people.

“Can the state interfere in this process? I admit that this is also possible, although so far, we have not yet approached this procedure for using digital rubles,” he said.

Mandatory CBDC usage has been a constant concern globally. In the EU, individual nations have expressed similar concerns; Slovakia amended its constitution to protect access to cash amid concerns that the ECB would force Slovakians to use the regional CBDC.

Aside from the Big Brother concerns, the digital ruble also presents a formidable challenge to the established banking industry. Aksakov revealed plans for the central bank to start offering retail services to Russians through the CBDC, which would lead to commercial bank disintermediation and an imminent collapse of a $1.5 trillion industry.

To learn more about central bank digital currencies and some of the design decisions that need to be considered when creating and launching it, read nChain’s CBDC playbook.

Watch: CBDCs are more than just digital money