On the same day, MasterCard issued a statement saying that it would suspend its MasterCard network service in Russia. All bank cards issued by Russian banks will no longer be supported by MasterCard network, and any MasterCard issued outside Russia cannot be used by Russian merchants or ATMs. ?
At the end of last month, the United States and the European Union issued a joint statement saying that in response to Russian military actions in Ukraine, they decided to exclude some Russian banks from the SWIFT system. Soon after, Visa and MasterCard said that they would take action to ban some Russian banks from accessing their payment networks.
The Wall Street Journal said that the statement issued by Visa and MasterCard this time means that they have extended their actions to all card issuers in Russia, instead of targeting only some Russian banks as the two companies said before.
According to the analysis, foreigners living in Russia will be the most affected. If they are used to using bank cards issued outside Russia, they will not be able to use them in Russia in the future. Russian residents are less affected, because if they use bank cards issued by banks in Russia, even those with Visa and MasterCard logos, their transactions will be settled through the Mir payment system in Russia.
In fact, the actions announced by Visa and MasterCard may cause the two companies to lose nearly 10 billion dollars in net income each year. According to the report of Nielsen, a world-renowned research institute, about 74% of debit and credit card transactions in Russia are completed by people who use bank cards with Visa or MasterCard logo. MasterCard's financial report shows that 4% of its 202 1 net income comes from transactions in Russia or funds involved in entering and leaving Russia.