Gazprombank, one of the major Russian state-owned banks, is going pilot a cryptocurrency service in Switzerland according to local news provider Vedomosti. The service includes some form of cryptocurreny transactions for its clients.

Aleksandr Sobol, who serves as the Deputy Chairman of the Board of Gazprombank, stated that Switzerland had been chosen due to the crypto friendly environment that the country is famous of. Sobol said that pilots projects are needed in order to conduct information for themselves, however he also stated that the bank has been looking at this opportunity due to the interest that was raised by its customers. Sobol added that some large private clients asked for such services. If everything goes well, they let the public know whether the above mentioned opportunities are suited for a broader client base.

Gazprombank is not the first Russian institution stepping in the crypto game. In January Sberbank (Russia’s largest bank) announced that they are going to open their own crypto exchange in Switzerland, as Russian law is not permitting crypto operations within the borders of the country. As we reported previously, crypto regulations are on their way in Russia too, however, official announcements has been postponed until the 1th of July, 2018. Seeing as these companies are opening towards this new market, it is not impossible to expect crypto friendly Russian regulations in the future.