Sber, the Russian government-backed company and the largest bank in the country, is launching a blockchain substitution-traded fund (ETF) to runway the performance of major crypto companies, such as Coinbase and Galaxy Digital.

Sber Asset Management officially announced the news on Thursday, stating that the new ETF is linked to diverse blockchain and crypto manufacture firms, including hardware and software providers for mining and issuing crypto assets.

Called "Sber — Blockchain Economy," the fund is set to trade under the ticker SBBE and will track the eponymous alphabetize developed by Sber's investment subsidiary SberCIB.

SBBE'southward portfolio will include some of the globe'south biggest crypto companies, including the U.s.a.' largest commutation, Coinbase; Mike Novogratz's investment visitor, Galaxy Digital; and blockchain software provider Digindex.

While SBBE's currency is the U.S. dollar, investors volition be able to purchase shares with Russian rubles in the SberInvestor app or via "whatever other Russian broker." The share price starts at 10 rubles ($0.013), the announcement notes.

According to the declaration, Sber's blockchain ETF will be the "beginning ETF in Russia to allow investors to make money in the blockchain market without difficulties associated with direct development, buying, holding and selling digital currencies."

"Direct investments in crypto assets are associated with loftier risks, so information technology's difficult to deal with them on your own. Equally such, nosotros offer to invest not in crypto but rather in firms focused on the development of blockchain technologies," Sber Asset Management CEO Evgeny Zaitsev said. He added that the new ETF will be available to "whatsoever individual."

Related: Depository financial institution of Russia to permit crypto investment via foreign firms: Written report

The news comes presently later on Sber Asset Management executive Vasily Illarionov disclosed the company'south blockchain ETF plans in mid-December. He said that the fund does not fall nether the Bank of Russia's restrictions and can be offered to retail investors.

As previously reported, the Russian central bank banned common funds from buying cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC) and providing crypto exposure to either qualified or unqualified investors.