Belarus has registered its first two crypto banks as residents of the High-Tech Park (HTP), marking a new stage in the country’s effort to bring digital-asset activity under a formal banking framework. The two institutions have not been publicly identified and must still obtain approval for inclusion in the National Bank’s specific registry before they can begin operations.
The registrations follow Presidential Decree No. 19, signed by President Alexander Lukashenko on January 16, 2026. After a six-month period for developing complementary regulations, the decree’s core provisions entered into force around July, establishing the legal framework for institutions that combine traditional banking functions with digital-asset services.
Under the new rules, crypto banks must operate as joint-stock companies and maintain residency within the HTP, Belarus’s technology-focused special economic zone. They will also operate under dual oversight involving the HTP administration and the National Bank of the Republic of Belarus, creating a structure that links the technology park’s regulatory environment with conventional banking supervision and anti-money-laundering requirements.
The permitted model is broader than simply adding crypto services to an existing bank. A single institution can potentially handle fiat currency deposits and credit operations alongside digital-asset custody and token-based transfers. This creates an integrated framework in which traditional financial services and token-based activity are managed within the same regulated entity.
The structure also distinguishes Belarus’s approach from regulatory systems that treat banking and crypto activity as separate licensing areas. By placing both functions within one institutional framework, the new regime could reduce the structural separation between conventional financial services and digital-asset operations, while keeping those activities subject to formal regulatory obligations.
The identities of the two registered institutions remain undisclosed. Authorities have described them as operators with established experience in the sector. Registration as HTP residents therefore represents an initial regulatory step rather than the immediate launch of banking services.
Before beginning operations, both institutions must be entered into the National Bank’s dedicated registry. Their services are expected to launch during the second half of 2026, although the precise timing will depend on the completion of the National Bank’s review and registration process.
The framework also represents an extension of Belarus’s longer-term approach to digital assets. In 2017, Lukashenko signed a decree legalizing cryptocurrency-related activities and providing tax exemptions for crypto companies operating through the HTP, with the original framework later extended and expanded.
The latest rules move that policy from a technology-company framework toward a more integrated financial-services model. Instead of leaving digital-asset activity alongside the traditional banking system, Belarus is establishing a regulated institutional structure capable of handling both areas within the same entity.
For the market, the key development to watch is therefore not simply the registration of the first two crypto banks, but whether they successfully complete National Bank registration and begin offering integrated fiat and digital-asset services in the second half of 2026. Their eventual operations will provide the first practical test of how the new framework functions beyond the registration stage.
