Russia clears first crypto exchanges and custodians under new law

Russia has published its first authorized crypto operator registers under the new framework that took effect on Sept. 1, and the list already includes Sberbank and VTB Bank. For high-risk payment players, the important part is not the headline novelty of “regulation” but the fact that the market is now being split into named exchange operators and custodians under Bank of Russia oversight.

1. The Bank of Russia on Tuesday published its first registers of authorized crypto operators, listing four exchange operators and five custodians.
2. Russia’s largest bank, Sberbank, was added to the custodian list, alongside Atomyze, Voltari and Cloud Infrastructure. VTB Bank appears on both lists, while T-Invest Lab, Zefir and Sistema-Crypto are on the crypto exchange operator list.
3. Sberbank said on Monday that it had applied for digital custodian status and plans to launch its first crypto products on Dec. 1. The bank said it initially plans to support Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH) and USDt (USDT) through its existing SberBank Online, SberInvestments and SberBusiness platforms.
4. The registrations follow a crypto law signed by Russian President Vladimir Putin in August, which created a regulated framework for exchanges, custodians, brokers and investors. The law puts the market under the Bank of Russia’s oversight and maintains Russia’s ban on using crypto to pay for goods and services.

For PSPs, acquiring teams and banking partners, the practical signal is straightforward: Russia is not opening crypto payments as a retail settlement rail. It is formalizing a supervised market for specific crypto roles while keeping the ban on using crypto for goods and services in place.