Sberbank plans to have the infrastructure for cryptocurrency trading in place and launch a digital depository by December 1, 2026, according to Interfax.

The bank, which is listed in Moscow under the tickers SBER and SBERP, is developing tools designed to track ownership and support transactions and customer operations in accordance with legislation currently under consideration in Russia’s parliament.

Alexander Vedyakhin, First Deputy Chairman of Sberbank’s Management Board, said: “One of the key elements of the new infrastructure will be a digital depository, which will maintain records of clients’ cryptocurrency rights and account for transactions outside the main blockchain. It will also facilitate transactions on active wallets to fulfill clients’ currency transfer orders. Sberbank plans to implement the necessary infrastructure for cryptocurrency trading and launch the digital depository by December 1, 2026.”

The planned depository is significant because the proposed regime would make recordkeeping, custody, and licensed intermediation central to how cryptocurrency services can be offered in Russia, rather than leaving those functions only to existing exchange or wallet arrangements.

Sberbank prepares systems for licensed crypto trading

Sberbank’s work follows the State Duma’s approval of the On Digital Currency and Digital Rights bill on July 21. Lawmakers passed the bill in its third reading, sending it next to the Federation Council. It would then require President Vladimir Putin’s signature to become law.

The bill addresses a broad range of cryptocurrency activity. It establishes rules for purchases by citizens, licensed intermediaries, exchange trading, clearing, custody, and digital depositories. Russia currently permits crypto ownership, mining, trading, and some overseas use under separate rules, while domestic payments with cryptocurrencies remain banned.

That dual structure is based on tax legislation, anti-money laundering rules, mining legislation, and digital financial asset laws. As a result, enterprises operate under several legal frameworks rather than one unified set of rules. Cryptocurrency continues to attract interest in Russia partly because sanctions have complicated cross-border transactions for Russian companies.

Vedyakhin said: “A large number of bylaws necessary for building the infrastructure and technological base—from depository and accounting systems to licensing new types of intermediaries—remain to be developed and adopted. Sber is ready to continue sharing its expertise and actively participate in this work.”

Sberbank has already spent several years building its digital asset operations. Since 2022, it has been included on Russia’s register of information system operators, a status that allowed it to participate in the country’s digital financial asset, or DFA, market.

In 2025, Sberbank began offering qualified investors structured bonds and DFAs linked to Bitcoin, Ethereum, and baskets containing several cryptocurrencies. In December 2025, the bank also completed a test involving loans backed by crypto. The trial was used to assess how cryptocurrency could function as collateral and how the bank’s systems would manage the related risks and records.

Russia would place exchanges and investors under tighter control

Under the proposed framework, exchanges, brokers, custodians, and digital depositories would be required to obtain licenses. The Bank of Russia would supervise those firms, maintain official lists of approved operators, and monitor compliance with the rules. Only companies included on the special register would be permitted to provide cryptocurrency exchange services.

Market participants would not have to receive approval immediately. The plan includes a two-year grace period for firms to apply for licenses. They would be allowed to continue operating outside the register until July 1, 2027, provided they use that period to complete the licensing process.

Retail access would be subject to a fixed limit. Non-qualified investors would be allowed to buy about 300,000 rubles, or roughly $3,800, in digital assets each year through approved intermediaries. Qualified investors would not be subject to that annual cap.

The bill maintains the ruble as Russia’s only legal tender. Cryptocurrencies and digital rights still could not be used for ordinary domestic purchases. However, the legislation provides limited exceptions for foreign trade transactions between residents and non-residents, payments involving coins produced through mining, and settlements connected to securities, other digital currencies, or digital rights.

The framework would therefore leave crypto available for investment and selected international transactions while continuing to block its everyday use inside Russia. If the Federation Council and Putin approve the bill, its main provisions are scheduled to take effect on September 1, 2026. The next practical step for banks and other market participants would be the adoption of the bylaws and licensing procedures that determine how the new register, depositories, and intermediaries operate before Sberbank’s planned December 2026 launch.