Russian banks are having difficulties issuing foreigners a “tourist card” that allows them to open accounts remotely and make payments while traveling in Russia. The newspaper writes about this “News” Referring to a letter from the Association of Russian Banks (ARB) to the Central Bank.
Although the “tourist card” law was adopted six months ago, there is still no adequate explanation. The publication notes that the legislation specifically interprets the term “foreign financial institution”, which enables the identification of customers, differently.
“Banks therefore do not understand which foreign counterparties they can cooperate with,” the ARB letter says.
Lawyer Elena Gladysheva noted that any finance-related business can fall under this definition.
REU Associate Professor Roman Gareev warned that in this case, the responsibility for issuing cards to unwanted people may fall on banks. The Central Bank responded that a foreign financial institution is a company registered abroad and entitled to provide financial services.
“It is difficult to find a foreign counterparty, as cooperation with a Russian bank requires compliance with Russian legislation, and this can lead to secondary sanctions,” said ADB Deputy Governor Alexey Voylukov.
Now the “tourist card” works in test mode. Full launch is expected by the end of 2024.
Before that, the permanent representative of the Republic of Crimea to the President of the Russian Federation Georgy Muradov announced Alternative to SWIFT.
Previously Russia and Türkiye in the name Start your payment system.