Sber Asset Management, which deals with investments for Russia’s largest bank, revealed the launch of the country’s first blockchain-based exchange-traded focus (ETF). According to a press release published by Sber last Thursday, its blockchain-focused ETF called “Sberbank – Blockchain Economy” will be responsible for tracking down the index with a similar name, which was created by the bank’s asset management subsidiary SberCIB.
The announcement notes that Sber’s ETF is the first Russian product to provide investors broad exposure to the blockchain sector without personally undergoing the challenges involved in the development, storage, purchase, and sale of these assets.
According to Evgeny Zaitsev, the CEO of Sber Asset Management, direct investments related to crypto assets come with extremely high risks, so it can be challenging to deal with them without assistance. As such, that’s why the company plans on investing in firms focused on blockchain development instead of digital assets.
However, Russian authorities have always expressed their stance against cryptocurrencies, arguing that these digital assets could be used for money laundering and financing terror groups. By December 2021, the central bank of Russia announced that investing mutual funds in crypto would be banned.
So, what about Sberbank’s ETF? The exchange-traded fund won’t violate any restrictions because it won’t be directly investing in cryptocurrencies. Instead, it will be investing in the stocks of famous blockchain-related companies. Trading will begin on the Russian stock exchange with SBBE as its ticker, and its starting cost per share is around 10 rubles ($0.13).
Global institutional investors have been eyeing crypto-focused ETFs more and more, and their interest continues to be piqued. So far, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has only approved three Bitcoin futures ETFs. However, applications for physical Bitcoin ETFs were rejected.
Other countries have had a more positive response towards ETFs that directly invest in cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin. For instance, Canada has already approved multiple similar products, such as Fidelity’s spot Bitcoin ETF.