Russian central bank lets financial firms offer crypto derivatives to qualified investors

Russia's central bank announced that financial institutions are now allowed to offer qualified investors financial derivatives, securities and digital financial assets linked to cryptocurrency prices.

The announcement marks an important step in Russia's ongoing effort to relax crypto regulations for domestic investors.

Still, the move is limited. The Bank of Russia stated in its Wednesday announcement that its condition for allowing such offerings is they must be "non-deliverable," meaning investors gain exposure to cryptocurrency price movements but not the actual digital assets.

"Credit institutions are advised to apply a conservative approach to assessing the risks associated with these instruments: provide for their full coverage with capital, and set individual limits on them," the central bank said, adding that it will provide further guidance on such risks this year.

Following the announcement, Sberbank, Russia's largest state-owned bank, said it is planning to launch structured bonds with yields tied to crypto prices, according to a report from Interfax.

The Moscow Exchange also plans to introduce a new cash-settled Bitcoin futures contract on its derivatives market this June. Separately, the SPB Exchange revealed its roadmap to offer cryptocurrency-linked futures trading, Interfax reported.

Meanwhile, the Bank of Russia submitted a proposal to the country's government in March to launch an experimental regime that allows crypto transactions for "highly qualified" investors. The bank and the Finance Ministry are also developing a crypto exchange exclusively for the limited number of investors.