Why does Putin need a “digital ruble”?

As Ukrainian intelligence officers managed to find out, starting next year, Russian state employees will begin to be paid in “digital rubles.”

De facto, the Kremlin will have total control over the circulation of the virtual ruble — it will track every transaction.

The spending of digital rubles will be able to be limited by the citizen's place of residence or type of goods, the GUR reports.

Moreover, the Russian authorities will be able to block citizens' accounts and automatically deduct taxes and fines from them without a court decision.

Ukrainian military intelligence draws attention to the fact that Russian citizens will be able to spend social benefits only on specific groups of goods and services that will be determined by the authorities.

The creation and implementation of a “digital ruble” could potentially lead to the emergence of a system of “behavioral loyalty” — access to money and the freedom to manage it would depend on the political or social “reliability” of a citizen.

What is important to understand is that the “digital ruble” is Putin’s new project, aimed at strengthening total control over his own population and a tough financial policy in the face of sanctions and insane spending on the genocidal war against Ukraine.