While Russia came into global news for launching its own CBDC, its hard policies against cryptocurrencies are still visible. In the latest development, a leading Russian bank is unable to get the regulatory nod for launching its digital asset product. Russia’s largest bank, Sber, is apparently delaying its crypto asset management products due to difficulty getting necessary licenses from the government. It does not come as much of a surprise since Russian authorities have always been wary of giving banks permission to launch their own cryptocurrency products.
Sber filed for the necessary licenses back in January 2021. However, they have still not been able to get the permissions to move ahead with their plans. As a consequence, their offering is going through constant delays and postponement. The bank officials are hopeful of getting the regulatory nod, but they cannot specify a fixed timeframe.
Russia’s cryptocurrency landscape has long been scattered and unregulated. However, the government has recently tightened regulations to combat financial crimes. As a consequence of these measures, many banks are now unable to offer crypto products to their customers.
Adding to the fear of the country’s crypto community, Bank of Russia governor Elvira Nabiullina has said that CBDCs are a perfect alternative to unregulated cryptocurrencies. If Russian authorities align with this view, all cryptocurrencies might be banned in Russia. The chances of anything like that happening is very slim nonetheless, and Russian crypto investors do not have anything to be fearful of yet.
