According to recent research by the Otkritie Bank – one of the leading banks based in Russia, 14% of Russians expect fiat currency to be replaced by crypto in the next 10 years. The voting was done between April 12 and April 16 and saw participation from 1,000 Russian city residents from age 18 to 65.

While around 34% of North-Western residents believe that crypto cannot substitute fiat in any way,  21% of local residents in Moscow consider the possibility of a digital currency replacing fiat, building a sturdy digital ecosystem.

Russia’s initiative on Digital Ruble is one of the many key structures in the evolution of fiat to digital money. In March, the Bank of Russia planned to finalize a digital prototype called Digital Ruble by the end of 2021. Russia’s CBDC will do a pilot test in 2022, with an earlier survey by Otkritie indicating that 47% of Russian residents are already prepared to use the digital ruble.

However, Russia’s regulations are preventing crypto from being extensively used. Earlier this month, a group of Russian lobbyists led by legislation agency Digital Rights Heart launched the “Public initiative of the crypto group in Russia” campaign. According to the group, legal guidelines such as the ban of using crypto as a form of payment and the three years’ imprisonment for not declaring one’s holdings, are holding back the development of the market.