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- To the numbered - a sign: Russians now have access to SBP transfers to nine countries
To the numbered - a sign: Russians now have access to SBP transfers to nine countries
Russians can send transfers via the fast payment system to nine countries, Izvestia has found out. A year ago there were only five of them. Among the available destinations are Abkhazia, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Moldova, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. The number of foreign banks accepting money via SBP by phone number is also growing - now there are at least 50 of them. Despite the difficulties with cross-border payments and secondary sanctions, players are finding new opportunities. What conditions are offered to Russians for sending money abroad and how transfers via SBP may develop further - in the material of "Izvestia".
To which countries you can send money via SBP
In the system of fast payments is actively developing international direction. Send money abroad by phone number already offers a number of Russian banks.
In "Alfa" and VTB transfers via SBP to three countries are available. In the latter, retail customers can now make such transfers to Belarus, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, told "Izvestia" in the press service of the credit organization. They added: all transactions are instantaneous, the commission is 0.2% of the transaction amount. At the same time, the limit - up to 1 million rubles, depending on the recipient bank.
In "Alfa" clients can transfer funds to Belarus, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, specified in the support service. They said that the money is sent to certain foreign banks - now there are 46 of them in the list.
In RSHB and Bank Novikom, transfers are available on SBP to Belarus, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan. In RSHB the commission will be 1.5%, while you can send no more than Br1 million per month, specified in the support service.
The list of foreign credit organizations that accept such transfers is changing. Now it includes 50 banks, said the press service of Novikom.
Nine destinations are available to T-bank clients for transfers abroad under the SBP. In addition to those already listed above - Abkhazia, Armenia, Kazakhstan, Moldova and Laos, the support service said. They added: crediting of funds is almost instantaneous, while you can send up to 30 million per month without commission.
Considering the possibility of launching such functionality SBP also bank BBR (included in the top 50 in assets in Russia), said the press service of the financial organization.
Over the past year, the list of countries where you can send money on SBP, has expanded significantly. At the end of 2023 they were only five, reported "Izvestia" in the Central Bank.
The number of foreign banks accepting money through the fast payment system is also growing. Thus, in August 2023, there were 14 of them. By the end of September of the same year, 37 foreign credit organizations had already participated in the project, told "Izvestia" head of the NSPK Vladimir Komlev. And now their number has reached at least fifty.
"Izvestia" sent an inquiry to the Central Bank and NSPK about how they are now developing the international direction in the SBP.
How banks are developing cross-border transfers
Since the introduction of sanctions and the withdrawal of international payment systems from Russia, the issue of transferring funds abroad has become more pressing than ever, says Alexei Tarapovsky, founder of Anderida Financial Group. Since the spring of 2022, domestic Visa and MasterCard cards have stopped working abroad. In addition, the largest Russian banks were disconnected from SWIFT. Among them are Sber, VTB, PSB, RSHB, MKB, Novikombank and Sovcombank.
It was necessary to quickly implement alternative solutions, which is why transfers via SBP began to develop so actively, the expert believes. The process is hampered by the fact that many partner countries are afraid of secondary sanctions, explained the general director of the payment service Vepay Georgy Nikonov. According to the expert, because of this, various transfer mechanisms are regularly canceled and re-launched. Nevertheless, our financial organizations find the right ways, and it is not only the system of fast payments.
Some Russian banks are also launching their own solutions. For example, VTB offers its clients to send funds to more than 50 foreign destinations. Depending on the country, transfers are made by card number, bank details or with the possibility of cash pickup, the press service said.
More than 90% of the total number of international transfers of individuals from Russia falls on Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, according to Alexei Tarapovsky.
Now the main users of cross-border transfers are labor migrants and Russians who moved abroad. The possibility of sending funds abroad via SBP is also often used to replenish foreign cards, says Artem Zhuravlev, product director of the fintech company Paygine. Many citizens started to issue them after 2022 in order to pay freely when traveling.
- Demand for transfers abroad via SBP is likely to continue to grow. This is due to the convenience, speed and relatively low commissions of such transfers, as well as the expansion of the geography of available countries, - said Artem Zhuravlev.
Russia actively offers cooperation with the Mir system to friendly countries, so in the next two or three years new directions for transactions via SBP will appear, believes Georgy Nikonov from Vepay. In his opinion, Turkey, some Asian countries, South America and the Middle East may be interested.
