Russia’s first deputy chairman of the central bank Olga Skorobogatova announced on Friday that from April 1, the Bank of Russia will launch a pilot project on real transactions with the digital ruble.

Skorobogatova was speaking on the sidelines of a fintech conference in Russia, Russia’s TASS news agency said reported.

Skorobogatova clarified that the pilot would include real transactions with real customers, but for a limited number of transactions and for a limited number of customers.

She added that regular customers would not be able to participate in the testing phase and the regulator will use the completion of the project to determine how to scale the use of the digital ruble.

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The 13 banks confirmed to participate have passed all tests – both technical and operational – and are expected to enter the pilot with the clients they have identified.

“The pilot will be conducted with real transactions and real customers, but for a limited number of transactions and for a limited number of customers with 13 banks that have already technically confirmed their readiness,” Skorobogatova said.

The Bank of Russia’s plan to test the digital ruble on real customers was previously announced, and the regulator has targeted launching the exchange of the digital ruble for foreign currency and opening wallets to non-residents in 2024.

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