Sberbank Pilots DeFi and Tokenization Products, Eyes Ethereum Integration Amid Growing Client Demand

Russia's largest bank, Sberbank, has confirmed it is testing multiple decentralized finance (DeFi) products as customer demand for cryptocurrency trading and digital asset holdings continues to grow. Management Board Vice Chairman Anatoly Popov stated the bank is monitoring developments across tokenization and DeFi infrastructure as part of its digital asset strategy.

Rising interest from clients is driving Sberbank to explore how DeFi-based products could complement traditional banking services, Popov said. The bank is testing various DeFi use cases as it evaluates how decentralized protocols could support trading, asset management, and settlement functions. This exploration coincides with a period in Russia where the regulatory framework for digital assets is gradually becoming clearer.

Sberbank is tracking asset tokenization, viewing it as a bridge between traditional finance and decentralized markets. The bank is examining how tokenized assets could interact with DeFi platforms to enable greater efficiency and new financial products. Popov noted that the integration of traditional banking infrastructure with digital assets will be one of the most important transformation areas for the financial sector in the coming period.

The strategy involves connectivity with existing DeFi ecosystems, rather than building isolated systems. Popov stated that Sberbank has shown interest in public-chain solutions, specifically citing Ethereum (ETH) as an example of a network offering mature infrastructure, advanced smart-contract capabilities, and the necessary security, scalability, and transparency for institutional-grade use cases.

Bank management believes that protocols developed on the Ethereum ecosystem create new opportunities in areas such as lending, liquidity management, and derivatives. The testing represents part of a broader trend of large financial institutions experimenting with decentralized technologies, signaling a significant indicator that the lines between traditional banks and the decentralized finance world are becoming increasingly blurred.