Belarus Approves First Crypto Banks Amid Growing Demand
Belarus has made significant strides in crypto regulation by approving two cryptocurrency banks to operate within its borders. The move is seen as a major milestone for the country, which has been at the forefront of crypto adoption in the post-Soviet space.
The Supervisory Board of the Belarus Hi-Tech Park (HTP) approved the registration of the two crypto banks after a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Alexander Turchin. The board's head of secretariat, Anna Ryabova, described the development as 'a significant milestone' that took over six months to establish.
The two institutions have already assembled teams of qualified specialists and built the necessary infrastructure to conduct operations with digital assets within the IT hub's special legal regime. However, they still need to be added to the National Bank of the Republic of Belarus (NBRB) registry of crypto banks before commencing full-scale operations.
Belarus has been a regional leader in crypto regulation, having legalized key activities such as mining and trading years ahead of its ally Russia. The country's presidential decree, No. 19 'On Crypto Banks and Certain Issues of Control in the Sphere of Digital Tokens', was signed by President Alexander Lukashenko on January 16, 2026.