Russia's largest bank, Sberbank, is preparing to officially launch loans to companies using cryptocurrency assets as collateral. In a statement to Reuters, the bank announced that it is developing this product and aims to serve cryptocurrency mining companies and other institutional clients holding digital assets.
From pilot success to commercial product
In fact, the foundations for Sberbank's move were laid last year. In a pilot transaction conducted with mining company AO Intelion Data in December 2025, the bank provided loans with cryptocurrency collateral for the first time. Intelion Data provided its own digital currency as collateral, while Sberbank secured the collateral using its own blockchain infrastructure and Rutoken hardware solution. Anatoly Popov, Sberbank's deputy chairman of the board, stated that this pilot application tested digital collateral mechanisms and would shape future regulations.
The bank emphasized its readiness to cooperate with the central bank in developing the regulatory framework. Sberbank's move parallels similar products being explored by global financial institutions such as JPMorgan and Wells Fargo.
Second in the competition, but strong
In Russia, the first step in the field of crypto-backed loans was taken by rival Sovkombank. However, Sberbank's entry into this market is significant because, as the central institution of the country's financial system, Sberbank's decisions are trendsetting.
Sberbank's crypto initiative is an extension of its years-long strategy to build digital asset infrastructure. The bank, which announced in 2020 that it would create a digital financial assets platform, received approval from the central bank as a DFA (Digital Financial Assets) issuer in March 2022.
Today, this platform is showing tremendous growth. According to Sberbank's announcement on February 2, the total value of digital financial assets issued on the platform reached 408 billion rubles ($5.3 billion) in 2025. This figure is 5.6 times the 73 billion rubles ($948 million) in 2024 and 204 times the 2 billion rubles in 2023.
In early February, Sberbank announced that only 231 billion rubles ($3 billion) of new DFAs would be issued in January 2026, an amount comparable to the previous year's six-month period. The volume of digital assets held on the platform increased sevenfold in six months, rising from 25 billion rubles to 185 billion rubles ($2.4 billion).
Regulatory roadmap
The Central Bank of Russia currently defines cryptocurrencies as foreign trade assets, allowing for their purchase and sale while prohibiting their use in domestic payments. The regulator has set July 1, 2026, as the deadline for finalizing a more comprehensive legal framework for crypto assets.
