Russia Develops Blockchain-based Payment System as Substitute for SWIFT

Russia's Rostec Group, a government organization, has developed a blockchain platform CELLS to launch a digital system for international payments capable of replacing the global SWIFT system.

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Russian banks were excluded from the SWIFT system last February thanks to sanctions imposed by Western countries in response to the Russian-Ukrainian war. Since then, Moscow has been trying to search for an alternative financial payment system to SWIFT to protect its foreign trade transactions.

The digital system of international payments will allow Russia to pay for its imports in its national currency, the Ruble, instead of the USD. The new system will also allow foreign countries to pay for their imports from Russia in their national currencies as well.

Rostec's statement said that the blockchain platform on which the international payments system was developed, called CELLS, was developed by the Novosibirsk Institute of Software Systems (NIPS), which is in turn affiliated with the Rostec Group.

The CEO of the Rostec Group, Oleg Yevtushenko says that the new system will be able to perform about 100,000 transactions per second, with the possibility of doubling this number.

"The system will make it possible to switch to settlements in national currencies, eliminate the risk of sanctions and ensure the independence of the national financial policy for clearing participants," he added: "The digital payment system on the blockchain platform can be used as a full-fledged replacement for SWIFT, providing high speed, security and irrevocable transactions."