The Essence of a Cash Surrogate

Abstract

   The paper is devoted to the study of the legal nature of a cash surrogate. It is proved that a cash surrogate is an illegal financial instrument and it cannot perform the functions of a legal means of payment. The legislative norm prohibiting the issuance of cash surrogates is unambiguous. Neither the State nor any other entity has the right to issue them. The problem of non-payments in the economy cannot be solved in an illegal way, i.e., by issuing cash surrogates, which cause significant damage to the implementation of the country’s monetary policy. Electronic money does not act as a surrogate, since it is a legal means of payment. Cryptocurrency has the characteristics of a surrogate; the fact that it is used in civil law contracts does not change its surrogate nature. The digital ruble is not a surrogate (substitute) for money, but a full-fledged Russian currency of a binding nature (mainly under public law), being the carrier of the Russian monetary unit issued and controlled by the State through the Bank of Russia, performing all the functions of money in economic, social and legal contexts.