Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov has launched a contest offering smartphones as prizes for voters voting on the updated design of the Russian 500-ruble banknote. The initiative aims to promote the Grozny-City complex as the symbol on the back of the banknote.

"Today, we desperately need the support of everyone who loves Grozny and the Chechen Republic. Therefore, I'm announcing a large-scale competition among residents of the Chechen Republic and anyone else who wants to participate! Ten iPhone 17 units will be up for grabs." — Kadyrov wrote on his Telegram channel.

To participate, you must vote for "Grozny-City" on four platforms—VKontakte, Odnoklassniki, by email, and through Gosuslugi—and then post screenshots on social media with the hashtag. The Bank of Russia's voting began on October 1 and will run until October 14. Participants select symbols from Pyatigorsk landmarks for the front of the coin and from sites in the North Caucasus Federal District for the back.

Following the announcement, "Grozny-City" surpassed Mount Elbrus by 17 votes, but Telegram channels suspected vote manipulation. Social media user comments were dominated by offensive criticism.