Law expands cashless payment options for consumers
Beginning on 1 March 2021, retailers whose annual revenue exceeds 30 million rubles must accept Mir cards, the national payment instrument. Starting from 1 July, this threshold will be reduced to 20 million rubles. The relevant amendments to the law ‘On Consumers’ Rights Protection’ have been approved today by the Federation Council.
The new requirements established for trade and service enterprises (TSEs) will increase not only the penetration of Mir cards, but also the overall portion of cashless payments. The experience of the implementation of the law since 2017, when companies with annual revenues exceeding 40 million rubles were obliged to accept the national payment instrument, demonstrates that almost all TSEs opt to enable payments via all main types of bank cards.
‘Cashless payments have been extensively growing in recent years. Over the last five years, their share in retail turnover has increased 2.5 times, totalling more than 66% today. Consumers appreciate the convenience of cashless payments, and we believe it essential to expand the card acceptance infrastructure so that people feel confident that a corner store accepts bank cards’, said Alla Bakina, Director of the Bank of Russia’s National Payment System Department.