Sberbank gets Bank of Russia nod for crypto trading — SkimNews
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- Sberbank secured approval from the Bank of Russia to trade cryptocurrencies including Bitcoin, Ether, and Tether's USDt ahead of a planned December launch.
- The Bank of Russia's updated register dated Tuesday lists 10 authorized crypto exchange operators and six digital custodians, up from four and five respectively a week earlier, and includes Sberbank, VTB, T-Invest Lab, and Atomyze.
- Sberbank plans to roll out crypto trading on Dec. 1, 2026, through its existing SberBank Online, SberInvestments, and SberBusiness platforms, and has already begun testing purchases, sales, deposits, and withdrawals via SberBank Online, per Vedomosti.
- The registrations follow Russia's new crypto rules that took effect Sept. 1, placing exchange operators and custodians under central bank oversight, though Russia still prohibits using cryptocurrencies to pay for goods and services.
- Sberbank said the final launch timeline depends on additional central bank regulations.
Why it matters: Sberbank is bringing regulated crypto trading to its existing retail and business platforms, giving Russian consumers a bank-channel route to Bitcoin, Ether, and USDt starting Dec. 1, 2026. The country's jump from four authorized operators to 10 in a single week formalizes the market under central bank oversight, though the final launch remains contingent on additional regulations from Moscow.
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