Belarus Greenlights Crypto Banks as Lukashenko Pushes Digital Assets Into Mainstream Finance

Belarus has formally moved to integrate digital assets into its national financial system. On January 16, President Alexander Lukashenko signed a new decree establishing a legal framework for crypto banks, signaling a decisive shift from experimentation toward regulated adoption.

According to the state news agency BELTA, the move positions Belarus as one of the few countries actively designing a model where digital tokens and traditional banking services operate under one roof.

The legislation, Decree No. 19, titled “On Crypto Banks and Certain Issues of Control in the Sphere of Digital Tokens,” lays the foundation for regulated crypto banking activity in Belarus. Authorities say the goal is twofold: strengthen the country’s role as a financial IT hub while ensuring oversight comparable to the traditional banking sector.

For the first time, Belarusian law formally defines what a crypto bank is—and how it should operate.

Under the new framework, a crypto bank is defined as a joint-stock company authorized to combine:

This structure allows crypto banks to offer hybrid financial products, merging blockchain-based tools with conventional banking infrastructure.

In practice, these institutions would serve as intermediaries between legacy finance and the digital asset economy, giving clients access to both worlds through a single regulated entity.

Not just any company can become a crypto bank. To qualify, an institution must:

Crypto banks will also operate under dual regulatory oversight. In addition to financial laws governing non-bank credit institutions, they must comply with rules issued by the Supervisory Board of the High-Tech Park.

This layered approach is designed to encourage innovation without sacrificing regulatory discipline, ensuring crypto banks meet standards similar to traditional financial institutions.

Officials say the decree is intended to give clients access to a new class of financial services—ones that combine the stability of classical banking with the speed and efficiency of token-based transactions.

Under the new model, crypto banks may:

The aim is not to replace the existing system, but to modernize it by embedding digital assets within a regulated structure.

The crypto bank decree fits neatly into Belarus’s long-term fintech ambitions. Since launching the High-Tech Park, the country has actively courted blockchain, crypto, and IT companies with favorable legal and tax conditions.

By introducing a formal crypto banking framework, Belarus appears to be moving beyond pilot programs and signaling that digital assets are becoming a permanent feature of its financial ecosystem.

Belarus’s push into crypto banking comes alongside a broader digital asset strategy. In November, Lukashenko publicly framed crypto mining as a tool to reduce global reliance on the U.S. dollar, citing Belarus’s surplus nuclear energy as a strategic advantage.

During a government meeting on energy policy, he dismissed concerns over crypto market volatility, calling digital assets an inevitable part of global efforts to create monetary alternatives amid accelerating de-dollarization trends.

By legalizing crypto banks, Belarus is placing a calculated bet on the future of digital finance—one where blockchain technology and regulated banking coexist rather than compete.

Whether the model succeeds will depend on execution, market demand, and regulatory clarity. But one thing is clear: Belarus is no longer sitting on the sidelines of the digital asset economy—it’s actively building the rails.