Russia’s largest bank, Sberbank, is preparing to expand crypto-backed lending beyond Bitcoin, planning to accept Ethereum and Tether’s USDT as collateral for loans. The move comes as Russia prepares new crypto market rules, but Sberbank’s overall offering still depends on approval from the Bank of Russia.
Sberbank Deputy Chairman Anatoly Popov said the bank plans to accept Bitcoin, Ethereum and USDT as collateral for loans.
“We plan to accept not only Bitcoin but also Ethereum and the stablecoin Tether as collateral.”
However, customers cannot immediately use all three assets as collateral. Popov said Sberbank will add ETH and USDT after the Bank of Russia allows them for public circulation.
The bank plans to adapt its existing products as Russia’s new crypto rules take effect and then gradually expand the assets available for secured lending.
Sberbank is not starting from scratch. The bank already tested crypto-backed lending with Russian mining company Intelion Data in December 2025.
The pilot involved a corporate loan secured by cryptocurrency mined by Intelion. Sberbank used its custody infrastructure to hold the collateral during the loan period.
That experience gives the bank a working model for handling crypto as security for a traditional loan.
The planned expansion would allow the same basic idea to cover Bitcoin, Ethereum and USDT, subject to the regulator’s rules.
The plans come as Russia prepares to bring its new regulated crypto market framework into force on September 1, 2026. The Bank of Russia will decide which cryptocurrencies can be traded through regulated channels.
The central bank has already proposed Bitcoin, Ethereum and USDT for regulated exchange trading, using factors such as market size, trading activity and trading history in overseas markets.
For non-qualified investors, the framework includes a 300,000-ruble annual purchase limit per intermediary, subject to passing a required knowledge test. Crypto payments for goods and services inside Russia will remain prohibited.
For now, Sberbank’s BTC-backed lending model is the foundation, while ETH and USDT remain dependent on regulatory approval and the final lending rules.
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