The largest bank in Russia has announced on Thursday that it will soon begin issuing and allowing the exchange of digital financial assets (DFA) through the blockchain platform owned by Sberbank, and that companies will be able to perform transactions through the blockchain platform in one month.
The Central Bank of Russia has reevaluated its position less than two weeks after it reiterated its proposal to ban cryptocurrency issuance, mining, and circulation in Russia. Sberbank has been added to the CBR’s register of information system operators for digital financial assets, according to a press release published on Thursday.
Inclusion in the registry allows companies to issue digital financial assets and exchange them between users within their platforms.
The Central Bank of Russia stated as reported by TASS (The Russian News Agency)
Sberbank, due to its status as a state-owned company, has been the target of sanctions, including those imposed by the United States Treasury, since the outbreak of the war between Russia and Ukraine. Sberbank announced earlier this month that it would be exiting almost all European markets due to sanctions imposed by the European Union.
We recognize that further development is needed to adapt to the current regulatory framework’s requirements. This is despite the fact that we are still at the beginning of working with digital assets. Regarding this issue, we are willing to work closely with the regulatory authorities as well as the executive authorities.
Sergey Popov, Director – Sberbank’s Transactional Business Division
While Russia has invaded Ukraine and the West has responded with stringent economic sanctions, the move to digital assets comes at a time when sanctions are being imposed against the country.
The blockchain technology Sberbank has developed is built on a distributed ledger, which, in theory, shields information from being tampered with. With the upcoming launch of Sberbank’s digital financial statements, legal entities will be able to issue digital financial statements verifying monetary claims, acquire digital assets allocated in the bank’s system and carry out blockchain transactions.
