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World & Geopolitics

Russia's Sberbank Seeks Chinese Chips Amid US Sanctions

WireByte Staff · July 9, 2026

Russia's largest lender, Sberbank, is turning to Chinese-made processors due to Western sanctions limiting access to advanced hardware. This move highlights the growing Sino-Russian chip trade alliance, as China builds its own chip supply market.

Key points

  • Sberbank, Russia's largest lender, is seeking Chinese-made processors due to US sanctions blocking access to advanced hardware.
  • The likely candidate to power Sberbank's systems is Huawei's Ascend 950 family, China's most advanced silicon.
  • This move highlights the growing Sino-Russian chip trade alliance, as China builds its own chip supply market.
  • US export controls are creating conditions for a Sino-Russian chip trade alliance, with China seeking to fill the gap in global chip supply.

Russia's Sberbank Seeks Chinese Chips Amid US Sanctions

Russia's largest lender, Sberbank, is turning to Chinese-made processors due to Western sanctions limiting access to advanced hardware. This move highlights the growing Sino-Russian chip trade alliance, as China builds its own chip supply market.

Sberbank's decision to seek Chinese chips was highlighted by German Gref, the bank's CEO, who expressed hopes of running the country's flagship GigaChat AI model on Chinese-made processors in May. The bank is seeking to secure Chinese chips because Western sanctions continue to block its access to advanced hardware from abroad.

The likely candidate to power Sberbank's systems is Huawei's Ascend 950 family, China's most advanced silicon. This move is part of a larger trend of China building its own chip supply market, with the US export controls creating conditions for a Sino-Russian chip trade alliance.

Sources

WireByte Staff — Editorial Team

The WireByte editorial team synthesises technology news from multiple primary sources, verifies the facts, and links every source. Articles are produced with AI assistance and reviewed under our editorial policy.