Alfa-Bank Plans Crypto Depository And Brokerage Push In Russia

Alfa-Bank plans to launch crypto-related depository and brokerage services as Russia’s largest private bank prepares for a regulated digital-asset market.

The bank is working on its own digital depository and a broader set of crypto services that would operate after Russia’s new legal framework takes effect. Dmitry Vitman, chief operating officer of Alfa-Bank’s corporate and investment banking division, put the first retail brokerage window around the end of 2026 or early 2027.

The initial model would use both Russian and foreign infrastructure, with licensed intermediaries handling access to digital currencies. Alfa-Bank is also testing crypto trading for qualified investors through its brokerage app, giving a limited user group exposure to Bitcoin, Ethereum, Tether and other major assets before a wider rollout.

The plan places Alfa-Bank next to Sberbank, VTB and T-Technologies in Russia’s race to build regulated custody, brokerage and exchange access around crypto assets. Sberbank has been preparing a wallet and digital depository inside its banking apps, while T-Investments has been positioned for crypto transactions through a brokerage structure.

Russia Builds Licensed Crypto Rails

Russia’s crypto-market bill passed its first State Duma reading in April and is expected to create licenses for brokers, exchanges, exchangers, trust managers and depositories. The framework would bring crypto trading into registered financial infrastructure while keeping domestic crypto payments restricted.

The structure matters for banks because it turns crypto access into a compliance-controlled product rather than an open exchange account. Depositories would store and account for customer assets, while brokers and licensed platforms would route trading and fiat conversion under state oversight.

Moscow’s market infrastructure has already moved in that direction. Moscow Exchange prepared more regulated benchmarks after adding SOL, XRP, TRX and BNB indexes to its crypto index push, expanding the reference-rate layer around major tokens beyond Bitcoin and Ethereum.

Alfa-Bank also enters the market with existing digital-finance infrastructure. Its A-Token platform has been used for digital financial asset issuance in Russia, giving the bank a regulated tokenization base before it expands into direct crypto services.

Bank Adoption Stays Under State Control

The Russian model is not a free-market crypto opening. It is built around licensed firms, qualified-investor rules, fiat exchange gateways and transaction monitoring. Vitman expects meaningful liquidity in Russia’s regulated crypto market to develop no earlier than the end of 2027.

That timing puts Alfa-Bank’s planned launch inside a wider institutional shift, where banks are building crypto rails before liquidity fully arrives. Global banks are also testing regulated tokenized settlement, including Swift’s push for 24/7 cross-border payments through tokenized-value infrastructure.