Overview
- Deputy Chairman Sergei Belov detailed the plan at a December 26 briefing presenting the updated banknote.
- The obverse retains the Nizhny Novgorod Kremlin, while the reverse features the Meteor hydrofoil, the Palace of Farmers and the Saratov bridge over the Volga.
- Commercial banks will receive the new notes in the near term for subsequent public distribution.
- Adjusting cash‑handling equipment is expected to take about one to one and a half years, with experience from two prior new issuances expected to streamline the process.
- Citizen feedback and an online vote informed the imagery choices, and the central bank expects to announce timing for a renewed public vote on the 500‑ruble design in 2026.