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February 25, 2023 | 2:54 p.m
Russian banks, hit by recent western sanctions, have warned customers abroad that their UnionPay cards may stop working. Portal
Russian banks are warning debit cardholders that fresh US and UK sanctions could mean their cards stop working abroad.
Emails from several Russian banks urging their customers to withdraw money from accounts linked to UnionPay-branded cards as soon as possible came a day after the US and UK imposed sweeping new sanctions that overturned the Refusal of transactions authorized by a list of Russian financial institutions.
UnionPay is a Chinese payment system that some Russian banks used before the war, and more turned to it after MasterCard and Visa pulled out of the country following the invasion a year ago.
According to the US Treasury Department, the sanctions should take full effect by May 25.
“Due to the sanctions imposed, operations with your UnionPay card abroad could be suspended in the near future,” Zenit Bank, which is on the sanctions list, wrote in a bulk email, Russian business news channel RBC reported. “We recommend withdrawing the required funds immediately.”
Russian banks, hit by recent western sanctions, have warned customers abroad that their UnionPay cards may stop working. Portal
Other banks followed suit.
“If you are not in Russia, withdraw money from your UnionPay card. In the Russian Federation, all cards work as usual, but difficulties may arise abroad: it is better to withdraw cash,” MTS Bank said in a statement.
Similar warnings also came from Primorye Banks, Bank Saint Petersburg and Uralsib Bank. A total of five out of a dozen Russian UnionPay auto issuers are on the new sanctions list.
The sanctions are expected to take full effect by May 25. Getty Images
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said the sanctions are intended to cut money from Russia’s military in response to the ongoing war.
“Over the past year, we, with a historic coalition of international partners, took action to weaken Russia’s military-industrial complex and reduce the revenues it uses to fund its war,” Yellen said in a press release on Friday. “Our sanctions have had both short-term and long-term effects, which are clearly evident in Russia’s struggle to replenish its weapons and isolated economy.”
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