Sberbank's history goes back to Cancrin's financial reform of 1841, when a network of the first state-owned savings banks was created in Russia. By the end of the 19th century, the network reached almost 4 thousand outlets with over 2 million depositors. Since 1905, savings bank outlets became authorized to sell insurance. After 1910, savings banks started subsidizing credit cooperation institutions and extending loans to small lenders. In 1915, savings bank outlets started accepting government securities for depositing.
In post-Soviet Russia, Sberbank is the largest universal bank despite growing competition from private and other state-owned commercial banks. The bank has gradually expanded its international presence. Since 2007, Sberbank is led by former economy minister Herman Gref.
Presently, Sberbank is a state-owned Russian banking and financial services company headquartered in Moscow. The company was known as "Sberbank of Russia" until 2015. Sberbank has operations in several European and post-Soviet countries. As of 2014 it was the largest bank in Russia and Eastern Europe, and the third largest in Europe, ranked 33rd in the world and first in central and Eastern Europe in The Banker's Top 100 World Banks ranking. In April 2014, several Ukrainian officials accused Sberbank of funding actions which took place in the East and South of Ukraine, including terrorism. The bank denied any involvement in the financing of illegal activities on Ukrainian territory, which was later confirmed by an examination carried out by the National Bank of Ukraine. In late 2013 and early 2014 the bank's network had become a target of the Do not buy Russian goods campaign. Ukrainian activists appealed not to use Sberbank's services because of their Russian origin. The boycott had become widespread in March 2014 in connection with the Crimean crisis and 2014 Russian military intervention in Ukraine with a wave of protest actions against Russian banks in Ukraine, and against Sberbank in particular. Banks were vandalized in particular after the accusations of funding of terrorism in Ukraine.