Mastercard, Visa block services to Russian banks
Mar 01, 2022
Washington [US], March 2 : Credit card and Payment giants Mastercard and Visa have confirmed that have blocked a number of Russian banks from their networks, dealing another heavy blow to the country's economy that's being heavily impacted.
In a statement, both the companies announced that they had moved quickly to comply with US sanctions imposed on Russia following its military operations in Ukraine last week.
"As a result of sanction orders, we have blocked multiple financial institutions from the Mastercard payment network," Mastercard said in a statement.
"We will continue to work with regulators in the days ahead to abide fully by our compliance obligations as they evolve," the company added.
Rival Visa has also blocked those on the sanctions list, saying Tuesday that it was "taking prompt action to ensure compliance with applicable sanctions, and are prepared to comply with additional sanctions that may be implemented.
Mastercard, the New York-based company also pledged to contribute USD 2 million for humanitarian relief for Ukraine.
California headquartered company Visa also made a similar donation, and said its number one priority was "ensuring the safety and security of our colleagues who are directly impacted".
In a brief statement, it said: "Visa Foundation will provide a USD 2 million grant to the US Fund for UNICEF to support humanitarian aid to the people of Ukraine."
Master Card and Visa announcements are the latest in the global ostracization of Russia following its invasion of Ukraine. It comes after the US, Canada and European allies agreed Saturday to remove key Russian banks from the interbank messaging system, SWIFT. It means Russian banks won't be able to communicate securely with banks beyond Russia's borders.
The wide-ranging sanctions have caused a plunge in the value of the Russian ruble. The ruble fell about 30 per cent against the U.S. dollar on Monday to less than 1 cent. It regained some ground after Russia's central bank more than doubled its key interest rate to 20 per cent to shore up the currency. It is been reported that Russian citizens have also been waiting in long lines to withdraw cash from ATMs.
