Russia's VTB Bank to Enable Cryptocurrency Trading for Investors

According to Odaily, Russia's second-largest bank, VTB Bank, is planning to allow investors to trade cryptocurrencies through brokerage accounts. Currently, the bank offers investment services in cryptocurrency derivatives and aims to provide direct digital asset investment next year. Andrey Yatskov, head of VTB Bank's brokerage services, announced at an investment conference in Moscow that clients will soon be able to directly buy, sell, and hold decentralized digital currencies like Bitcoin in their personal investment or brokerage accounts. Presently, Russia permits only 'highly qualified' investors to engage in cryptocurrency investments under an experimental legal framework, which requires them to have at least 100 million rubles in traditional investments and an annual income of 50 million rubles.