Russia's largest bank, Sber, plans to broaden its crypto-backed lending by accepting Tether's USDt and Ether as collateral, in addition to Bitcoin.

Deputy Chairman Anatoly Popov, cited by Cointelegraph from a Friday TASS report, said the bank will adjust its existing products and gradually expand offerings as Russia's new crypto law takes effect. Sber intends to add these assets as collateral once the central bank approves their public trading.

Russia is building a regulated crypto market under a law signed by President Vladimir Putin on August 4, with core provisions set to commence on September 1. The legislation grants the Bank of Russia authority to determine which crypto assets may trade on regulated exchanges, and the central bank had proposed Bitcoin, Ether and USDt for such trading on August 11, noting they meet criteria including market capitalization, trading volume and a history of price data from overseas markets.

Sber has been cautious about the rollout of the digital ruble, Russia's central bank digital currency, ahead of its September 1 rollout. CFO Taras Skvortsov indicated there appears to be limited demand for the CBDC beyond the central bank itself, suggesting that neither retail nor corporate clients or financial institutions are actively pursuing it.