Russia is days away from a major expansion of its digital ruble, the country's central bank-issued digital version of the national currency, but many iPhone users may be unable to access it through their banking apps when the new rules take effect Sept. 1.
- Russian banks have so far been unable to get updated iOS apps supporting the digital ruble into Apple's App Store, Russian local newspaper Vedomosti reported on Friday, citing sources at financial institutions, a large bank and among app developers.
Instead, users access wallets held on the central bank's platform through their existing commercial-bank apps.
Starting Sept. 1, Russia's largest banks must give customers the option to transact in digital rubles, expanding a pilot that until now has been limited to selected participants.
Large merchants covered by the new rules must also begin accepting the currency.
Android is ready. iOS isn't
Several major banks are already pointing customers specifically toward Android, where compatible apps can be distributed and the required Russian-certified cryptographic protections are already available.
VTB, Rosselkhozbank and Bank Rossiya, all subject to U.S. sanctions or financial restrictions, told Vedomosti that digital ruble functionality would be available through their Android apps, without announcing equivalent iPhone access.
As sources familiar with the matter said, digital-ruble-enabled apps contain technical links to Bank of Russia infrastructure and must comply with Russian cryptographic-security requirements. Those characteristics can also make it easier to identify an application as belonging to a sanctioned Russian financial institution, according to developers cited by the newspaper.
Apple has not publicly confirmed that it is specifically rejecting apps because they support the digital ruble and the exact mechanics of its review process are not public.
A banking-industry source said there's currently no certified cryptographic-protection system that both satisfies Bank of Russia requirements and can be integrated into native or adaptive iOS banking apps.
Certified solutions already exist for Android and web access, though.
So even without an App Store rejection, full native iPhone support appears to face another bottleneck.
A workaround just disappeared too
The problem deepened this week. On Aug. 26, users reported that iMazing, a desktop tool that can back up, manage and reinstall iPhone apps and similar software could no longer restore previously downloaded apps that had since been removed from the App Store, cutting off a workaround widely used in Russia to reinstall banking apps.
Existing installations generally continue to work, but restoring deleted apps has become much harder.
- In April, the European Union prohibited transactions involving Russia's digital ruble and support for its development, saying the project was intended in part to provide a payment system less vulnerable to Western sanctions.