The Bank of Russia has added Sberbank, the country's largest lender, to its register of authorized crypto exchange operators, clearing the bank to trade Bitcoin, Ether and Tether USDt ahead of a planned December launch.

The central bank's updated register, dated Tuesday, lists 10 authorized crypto exchange operators and six digital custodians. A week earlier, those lists counted four and five entries respectively. The expansion more than doubled the operator roster within seven days.

The register now includes major state-linked lenders Sberbank and VTB alongside nonbank companies such as T-Invest Lab and Atomyze. Sberbank secured digital custodian status last Tuesday, placing it among the first companies to hold that designation under the new framework.

What products will Sberbank offer?

Sberbank plans to launch crypto products supporting Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH) and Tether's USDt (USDT) on Dec. 1, 2026, according to the bank's earlier statements. Distribution will run through three existing platforms: SberBank Online, SberInvestments and SberBusiness, meaning the bank folds digital assets into channels that already serve its retail and corporate base.

The bank has already begun testing crypto purchases, sales, deposits and withdrawals inside the SberBank Online app, Russian business newspaper Vedomosti reported on Thursday, citing Sberbank's press office. The bank said the final launch timeline depends on additional central bank regulations.

That caveat matters operationally. Sberbank can technically serve clients now, but each product category awaits supplementary rules from the regulator before full commercial rollout.

What changed on Sept. 1?

The registrations follow the Sept. 1 entry into force of Russia's new crypto rules, which placed exchange operators and custodians under direct central bank oversight. The rule change created the licensing regime that Sberbank, VTB and eight other operators now operate under.

One restriction remains firm: Russia still prohibits using cryptocurrencies to pay for goods and services. The authorized operators can intermediate trading, custody and conversion, but merchants and consumers cannot settle transactions in digital assets. That keeps the market structure investment-focused rather than payments-focused, and positions licensed banks as the primary gatekeepers.

Why does the register expansion matter?

The jump from four to 10 operators in one week signals that the Bank of Russia is processing applications at pace following the September framework. For Sberbank, the operator license completes a two-step authorization: custodian status first, exchange authorization second.

For the competitive field, the entry of Sberbank and VTB concentrates early market power in the two largest state-controlled lenders. Nonbank entrants such as T-Invest Lab and Atomyze now compete against institutions with tens of millions of existing retail app users, a distribution advantage comparable to a stock brokerage competing with the exchange itself.

The regulatory backdrop adds pressure. The United Kingdom sanctioned three crypto exchanges tied to Russian illicit funds, according to a related report, underscoring Western scrutiny of ruble-adjacent crypto flows. Licensed, centrally supervised operators may help Moscow demonstrate control over the sector, but they also create identifiable choke points for future sanctions enforcement.

The next fixed date to watch is Dec. 1, 2026, Sberbank's stated launch date, though the bank has signaled that further central bank regulations could shift the timeline.