Sberbank moves toward crypto-backed lending as Russia readies regulation

Russia’s largest bank, Sberbank, is moving toward offering loans secured by cryptocurrency and said Friday it is prepared to coordinate with the country’s central bank on shaping the necessary regulatory framework, according to Reuters.

The lender has already tested the model in January. The bank issued the country’s first bitcoin-backed loan to one of its largest bitcoin miners, IntelionData, calling the transaction a pilot and suggesting it was keen to issue more in the future.

The volume of digital financial asset issuances on the platform hit 408 billion rubles (about $5.3 billion) in 2025 — an increase of 5.6 times versus 2024 (73 billion rubles, or $948 million) and 204 times greater than 2023 (2 billion rubles or $26 million).

Sberbank’s regulated digital financial asset (DFA) business expanded rapidly in 2025, with total issuance reaching RUB 408 billion ($4.9 billion), more than 5.6 times the 2024 level, while the bank’s own DFA holdings grew sevenfold in six months to RUB 185 billion ($2.2 billion).

The growth comes alongside a still-dominant traditional balance sheet: in December, Sber’s corporate loan portfolio stood at RUB 30.4 trillion ($365 billion), its retail loan book at RUB 18.8 trillion ($226 billion), and client deposits at RUB 33.1 trillion ($398 billion), highlighting the relatively small but fast-scaling role of tokenized assets within Russia’s largest lender.

When announcing the trial loan, Anatoly Popov, Sberbank’s deputy chairman, said the bank already offers clients structured bonds and digital financial assets with investments in bitcoin and ether. Popov also said the bank was currently testing decentralized finance (DeFi) instruments and supports the gradual legalization of cryptocurrencies within the Russian legal framework.

Another major lender, Sovcombank, became the first Russian bank to roll out crypto-backed lending on Feb. 5 to individuals and businesses legally holding bitcoin.

In December 2025, it reopened the cryptocurrency market to the public with new rules laid out by the country’s central bank. Officials expect to complete legislation governing crypto assets by July 1, 2026.

Sberbank said the planned lending program would target not only mining companies but also businesses that hold cryptocurrency on their balance sheets.