Bankers gathered for exercises

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Sber is preparing for possible technological sanctions​

Against the backdrop of reports of possible US sanctions restrictions on the supply of new electronics to Russia and support for the existing Sberbank, he conducted technological exercises. They simulated the shutdown of the bank's IT infrastructure from the support of Microsoft, Nvidia, VMware, SAP and other companies. The government is also worried about possible technological sanctions: they are preparing scenarios in case restrictions are introduced. For organizations that have not yet embarked on import substitution, a sharp transition will be painful, experts say.

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Picture: Viktor Chumachev, Kommersant

According to Kommersant's sources in the government and in the computer market, last week Sber conducted a technology exercise that simulated the bank's disconnection from support for foreign software and electronics suppliers, including Microsoft, Nvidia, VMware, SAP, Oracle and Intel. . One of Kommersant's interlocutors added that Sber is planning a large-scale purchase of servers and data storage systems.


Sberbank itself, as well as other large banks, including VTB, Gazprombank, Promsvyazbank and Alfa-Bank, did not answer questions about such exercises. The Russian office of SAP said they had no information about the exercise. Nvidia is not ready to comment on the situation: “Our business is out of politics. We have continued and will continue to support users of our technologies around the world, including Russia.” Microsoft declined to comment, Oracle and Intel did not respond to inquiries.


The fact that the US authorities warned manufacturers of microcircuits about a possible ban on the supply of microelectronics to the Russian Federation in the event of a “Russian attack on Ukraine”, reported Reuters January 19. These statements caused concern in the Russian government, Kommersant's sources say.


According to one of them, the authorities are now working on possible scenarios in the event of both limiting the supply of microelectronics to the Russian Federation and disconnecting Russian enterprises working with foreign software from supporting it.

Any large business analyzes the stability of the IT infrastructure and assesses possible risks, “this is standard practice,” the Ministry of Digital Development emphasized.


Back in 2021, Sber showed interest in making the IT infrastructure less dependent on American companies. At the end of October, top managers of the bank held a meeting with the heads of electronics developers and IT integrators, at which they discussed the prospects for switching to Russian computer technology, including for supporting the operation of AI systems ( see "Kommersant" dated November 10, 2021 ). One of the most powerful supercomputers in Russia, Sberbank's Christofari, runs on American Nvidia hardware. According to Kommersant, STC Modul was considered as a potential supplier.


Representatives of industry associations interviewed by Kommersant consider it necessary to speed up import substitution of both electronics and software. “In connection with the aggravation of the foreign policy situation, we are no longer just talking about the need for import substitution, but about how much time remains for this,” emphasizes Renat Lashin, executive director of the ARPP “Domestic Soft”. To mitigate the risks, in his opinion, it is possible through a series of infrastructure testing, conducting exercises and checking the readiness of rapid response scenarios. “Then, taking into account the understanding of bottlenecks, it is necessary to create backup mechanisms on domestic software and electronic components,” he says.


Now a lot of foreign software has domestic counterparts, Irina Zinovkina, director of consulting at InfoWatch Group, notes, “but for organizations that have not yet begun to replace foreign solutions, a sharp transition will become problematic.”

In particular, she clarifies, when replacing systems, data migration will be required, which will inevitably affect business processes. Aleksey Smirnov, head of the board of directors of Bazalt SPO, however, notes that Western suppliers themselves, like SAP and Oracle, will resist sanctions. “They have a fairly wide range of clients in the country among private and state structures. Leaving Russia would be the loss of a fairly large market,” he says.


Nikita Korolev, Olga Sherunkova

A source