Russian bank customers are unlikely to face major issues following the termination of Samsung Pay in Russia. This assessment comes from the country’s leading credit institutions, as reported by TASS, which gathered insights from executives and product managers across the sector.
One example is Nikita Buklish, the product manager for Tinkoff Pay. He stated that the shutdown of Samsung Pay should not cause a significant impact, noting that a wide array of alternative payment methods remains accessible to Russian smartphone owners. Buklish also suggested that the process of replacing foreign payment services with domestic options has, in practice, progressed past the stage of simple substitution.
Similarly, a representative from VTB told TASS that external restrictions have long pushed Russian banks to innovate and expand substitute payment solutions. The bank emphasized that credit institutions across Russia are already positioned to move forward with comparable decisions in the future, if needed.
In line with this sentiment, Sberbank offered a parallel perspective, recalling the launch of its own smartphone payment tool, SberPay, back in 2019. The move reflects a broader strategy to diversify payment channels and reduce reliance on any single foreign service.
Meanwhile, the Mir Pay application has been removed from Google Play in recent developments, underscoring ongoing shifts in the digital payments landscape within the country. Observers note that these adjustments align with a broader push to strengthen domestic financial technology infrastructure and ensure continuity for consumers using mobile payments.