SIRIUS /Federal Territory/, October 16. /TASS/. Russia is not planning to go cashless, Deputy General Director of Goznak on marketing and strategies Georgy Kornilov told reporters at the Finopolis forum.

Earlier, Kornilov said that the debate on whether cash is actually necessary could begin in 2030, adding however, that this does not mean that cash will be phased out that year.

"Cash is not going away now or any time soon," he said. Current technology and infrastructure are not sufficient for such a shift, the official noted.

Households currently hold around 17 trillion rubles ($175 bln) in cash, he stressed. The amount has stabilized, but it will not decrease dramatically, Kornilov said. "And even if it (the use of cash - TASS) is not as widespread as it once was, that does not mean that cash will disappear in the foreseeable future," he added.

The Finopolis 2024 forum of innovative financial technologies is taking place in Sochi from October 16 to 18. TASS is the general information agency.