Kazakhstan banks will be able accept In addition to payment and transfer transactions with Mir cards, cash is issued to the owners via ATMs. This was announced by the press service of the Kazakhstan Financial Market Regulation and Development Agency on Friday, December 9th.
“On December 8, 2022, regulators received a letter from the Office of Foreign Assets Control, a division of the U.S. Department of the Treasury (OFAC), in which the U.S. agency announced that it did not object to the use of debit cards. The Mir system is used by citizens migrating from Russia to Kazakhstan to carry out operations aimed at earning their livelihood.
The decision to connect to the mir system is made by Kazakh banks independently on the basis of their own development strategy, comes after the message.
“The letter states that transactions with this payment system will be kept under special control in order to prevent it from being used to circumvent anti-Russian sanctions,” the press service said. They added that a meeting was held with representatives of local banks to provide clarification on the possibilities of using payment cards of the Mir system in Kazakhstan.
He described this decision as correct in an interview with “socialbites.ca” Bulat Sultanov, Director of the Kazakhstan Institute for Strategic Studies. According to him, Russian citizens should have comfortable conditions on the territory of Kazakhstan and use Mir cards.
“I believe that the Mir card should be in circulation on the territory of Kazakhstan. And all citizens of the Russian Federation who own it should freely use it on the territory of Kazakhstan. We live in a world where our financial systems are built into the global system and are now built in such a way that relationships are not strictly market based.
Citizens of the Russian Federation should be able to have a comfortable stay in Kazakhstan.
The second question for me is whether they will bring capital, investment or other profits to the republic – let financial institutions think. The most important thing for me is that we live in the CIS area within the framework of the Eurasian Economic Union. We are sealed with a treaty of eternal friendship and alliance. We are allies with Russia. The main thing for me is not to be ashamed to look into the eyes of the Russians. A friend in need is a friend indeed. We must provide maximum assistance to the Russians, ”Sultanov concluded.
Sanctions against Mir and alternative payment systems
Recall that in September, the US Treasury threatened those who helped use Mir cards outside of Russia with sanctions. All Turkish banks refused to accept cards of the Russian payment system, and Kazakhstan’s largest Halyk Bank (Halyk Bank) stopped accepting Mir cards at ATMs.
On December 9, it was also learned that Russia and Turkey will soon bring an alternative to paying with Mir cards.
“The Russian Federation and Turkey are developing an alternative to paying with Mir cards, it will definitely be available soon. Due to the pressure of foreign companies on Turkey’s financial system – quite strongly integrated into the Western financial system – we see those refusing to serve Mir cards, – they quote “News” Alexei Yegarmin, Chairman of the Russian-Turkish Business Council.
According to him, an alternative to the Mir card can be presented at the beginning of the next tourist season – in May-June 2023. He added that it is now possible to pay directly in rubles at Turkish hotels, and that some hotels “really already accept ruble payments, some shops even accept it”.
It was previously assumed that Russians could easily issue TROY cards in Turkish banks and pay with these cards in Turkey. So far, no official announcement has been made about the introduction of this system, he writes. TourDom.ru.
In early December, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov expressed interest in using the Mir system in Azerbaijan. According to him, three local banks have already been connected to the Russian analogue of SWIFT.
Some other countries also talk about their readiness to implement the Russian payment system. For example, statements were made by representatives of India, Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand. In addition, Egypt, United Arab Emirates, Maldives, Cuba and Bahrain authorities are also considering the possibility of connecting to Mir. Mir cards are now accepted in 11 countries, including Vietnam and South Korea. Prof.Travel.
Source: Gazeta
Ben Stock is a business analyst and writer for “Social Bites”. He offers insightful articles on the latest business news and developments, providing readers with a comprehensive understanding of the business world.