Russia's largest bank, Sber, plans to accept Tether's USDt stablecoin and Ether as loan collateral alongside Bitcoin, Deputy Chairman Anatoly Popov said in a Friday TASS report. Sber will expand its existing crypto-backed lending products gradually after the Bank of Russia permits the assets for public trading.
The moves follow a Russian law signed by President Vladimir Putin on Aug 4 that takes effect Sept 1, giving the central bank authority to decide which crypto assets may trade on regulated exchanges. On Aug 11, the Bank of Russia proposed Bitcoin, Ether and USDT for regulated exchange trading, citing market capitalization, trading volume and at least five years of price history on overseas markets.
Sber's chief financial officer Taras Skvortsov questioned demand for Russia's digital ruble CBDC ahead of its wider Sept 1 rollout, saying he sees few signs of broad interest outside the central bank.
Cointelegraph; TASS; Bank of Russia