On 28 September 2026, Belarus’s Hi-Tech Park (HTP) registered its first two “crypto-banks” — a status with no equivalent in most countries. Most readers will assume one of two things: that a crypto-bank is just a crypto exchange with a grander name, or that it’s an ordinary bank that happens to hold crypto. It is neither.

It is a deliberate hybrid: an HTP resident licensed to combine token activity — crypto operations — with certain banking, payment and other financial operations, under a regime that the government, the National Bank and the HTP put together over the course of 2026. For a foreign investor, the news is both a signal and an opportunity: Belarus is deliberately building a bridge between traditional finance and crypto within the HTP’s special legal regime, and the status is now live and attainable. Two things, however, temper the excitement. First, authorisation is a two-step process, and the headline event is only step one. HTP residency alone is not enough: a crypto-bank must also be entered in the National Bank’s register before it can operate, which is why the two newly registered residents are not yet doing business as crypto-banks. Second, the status sits within a heavily regulated and closely supervised framework. This piece covers what happened, what a crypto-bank actually is, and what it means in practice.

What happened

Start with the facts. At its meeting on 28 September 2026, the HTP’s Supervisory Board, chaired by the Prime Minister, registered two residents as crypto-banks — the first in Belarus. The move follows the presidential decree on crypto-banks, which took effect in July 2026, and a package of acts adopted in 2026 by the government, the National Bank and the HTP that put the framework in place over the preceding months: requirements for the organisations, the list of permitted operations, and accounting and reporting rules. The two organisations have not been named publicly; officials described them as established crypto-market players with hands-on experience in the field. As reported by the state news agency, the HTP Secretariat called the step significant — an evolutionary move that brings traditional finance and the crypto industry closer together.

What a “crypto-bank” actually is

This is the part worth getting right, because the name is misleading in both directions. A Belarusian crypto-bank is not a classic bank, and it is not an ordinary crypto exchange — it is a hybrid. An HTP resident with this status may combine token (crypto) activity with certain banking, payment and other financial operations under the HTP’s digital-asset regime. In other words, it can do some of what a bank does and some of what a crypto platform does within a single regulated entity — precisely the bridge between traditional finance and crypto that the authorities say they want to build. That hybrid nature is the whole point of the status, and it is what makes it genuinely novel: not an exchange calling itself a bank, nor a bank dabbling in crypto, but a new, clearly defined category that deliberately sits between the two.

The two-step authorisation

This is the detail most headlines skate over, and it matters. HTP registration — the event of 28 September — is not the end of the process. To actually operate as a crypto-bank, an organisation must also be included in the National Bank’s register. So the two residents now hold HTP status, but they still have to clear the National Bank step before they can do business as crypto-banks. The HTP’s special regime grants the right to work with digital assets; National Bank registration adds the requirements that apply to conventional banking and payment operations. Only with both in place is an organisation fully authorised. The practical takeaway: “registered as a crypto-bank” does not yet mean “open for business as one”, and anyone following this story should watch for the National Bank step, not just the HTP announcement.

The regime: supervision, confidentiality and obligations

The framework around the status is substantial, as befits an entity that straddles banking and crypto. Supervision is dual: both the HTP and the National Bank have a role. Notably, while a crypto-bank’s data is protected by bank secrecy, the HTP Secretariat is entitled to obtain information on crypto accounts and token deposits, so confidentiality works alongside oversight rather than replacing it. A crypto-bank must warn its clients about the risks of cryptocurrencies and their volatility. It also carries the usual obligations of a regulated financial business: requirements for the organisation itself, a defined list of permitted operations, accounting and reporting duties, and anti-money-laundering compliance. This is no regulatory free zone. The status comes with real, ongoing obligations and real supervision — exactly what you would expect of a licence that lets an entity handle both crypto and fiat money.

What it means for a foreign investor

For the right investor, this is a genuine opportunity. Belarus has created a novel crypto-finance status within the HTP’s regime — and has now granted it for the first time. It is a bridge between banking and crypto that few jurisdictions offer, and it is live rather than theoretical. A serious, experienced crypto-finance player could build a regulated crypto-banking business in Belarus on this basis. But read the signals honestly: the first two to obtain the status were established market players with hands-on experience, the requirements are real, and authorisation takes two steps. This regime is aimed at professional operators; it is not a quick, light-touch set-up for anyone who wants a crypto badge. If you are that kind of operator, it is well worth watching and assessing — and if you are setting up a company in Belarus more broadly, it shows how far the HTP’s digital-asset ambitions now reach.

The compliance reality, and what to do

Any sober reading of this news needs two caveats. A crypto-bank is bound by anti-money-laundering obligations and dual supervision — it is a regulated financial status, not a loophole. And, like any Belarus-linked financial business, it operates within the current sanctions and banking environment, which has to be navigated properly. This is a domestic regulatory development, not a vehicle for moving sanctioned money, and it should not be treated as one. For a genuinely interested investor, the sensible path is to assess eligibility against the new (and still evolving) requirements, plan for both the HTP and the National Bank steps, factor in the tax and structuring questions that come with any regulated entity, and take specialist advice early — a brand-new regime is exactly where good advice earns its keep. We are following how the regime develops, so if it is relevant to you, get in touch.

The crypto-bank status at a glance

A new hybrid — neither exchange nor bank — authorised in two steps and supervised at every stage.

Correct as of the registrations on 28 September 2026. The regime is new and still evolving, so check the current rules and status before acting.

Conclusion

Belarus has registered its first two crypto-banks — a genuinely new hybrid status that combines crypto and banking within the HTP, granted in two steps (the HTP, then the National Bank) and supervised accordingly. It’s a real opportunity for serious crypto-finance players and a notable regulatory move. But it comes with a two-step gateway, dual oversight and anti-money-laundering obligations, and it sits within Belarus’s wider compliance environment, so it is no light-touch haven. The two residents have the status; what to watch next is the National Bank step and how the regime beds down in practice.

If the crypto-bank status is relevant to your plans — or you want to understand how the HTP’s digital-asset regime fits into a wider structure — tell us what you’re building, and we’ll advise on where things stand and what it would take. Get in touch, and see our guide to the Hi-Tech Park for an overview of the regime it sits within.