Report: Russia’s Biggest Bank Will Allow Crypto Trading This Summer
Vice Chairman Popov said that clients might be able to use the service by the end of June.
It is said that in the coming weeks, private buyers will be able to buy and sell digital currencies through Sberbank, which has the most assets of any Russian bank.
A few years ago, the entity joined the crowd and tried to start a few bitcoin projects. For one thing, it tried to get permission to make its own digital currency and launched the first ETF in Russia that focused on blockchain.
Sberbank Pushes Forward
A local news source said that customers will be able to use digital financial assets (DFA) to do business on the Sberbank site as early as June. Deputy Chairman of the Board Anatoly Popov told TASS: “The news is true.”
“If we talk about individuals, then in the second quarter, we believe, in June, this function will open for individuals. Individuals will have the opportunity to buy digital financial assets and sell them. Accordingly, exchange them for cash.”
Sberbank planned to start the offering at the end of the first quarter of this year, saying that it would “bring liquidity to the bank’s platform.” Alexander Vedyakhin, who is the group’s First Deputy Chairman, said last year:
“We need to give individuals the opportunity to access these platforms. Sber will give this opportunity at the end of the first quarter of 2023, maybe at the beginning of the second quarter. That is March-April. I think that the first individuals will enter our CFA platform and, accordingly, come there with liquidity.”
Before releasing the choice, it’s important to note that the bank made a special scoring system for its customers. The change makes sure that people who want to spend do so with full knowledge of the risks.
The Past Crypto Ventures
The Central Bank of the Russian Federation was against the cryptocurrency industry, but Sberbank wanted permission to start its own digital asset and open a blockchain platform in 2021.
A few months later, Sberbank achieved a big milestone by making a blockchain exchange-traded fund (ETF) that follows the biggest cryptocurrency companies, such as Galaxy Digital, Coinbase, and Diginex. This was the first product of its kind in Russia, and it let Russian buyers do business in the industry without buying, selling, or holding tokens.
After that, in 2022, the bank got a licence that lets it issue and trade coins. Sergey Popov, who is in charge of Sberbank’s Transaction Business Division, gave more information:
“Companies will be able to make their first transaction on our blockchain platform one month from now. We are just starting our work with digital assets, realizing that further development requires adaptation of the current regulatory framework. To do that, we are ready to work closely with the regulator and executive bodies.”
