- Статьи
- Economy
- Help squared: Russians will be able to pay for purchases in friendly countries with a single QR code
Help squared: Russians will be able to pay for purchases in friendly countries with a single QR code
Russians will be able to pay with a universal QR code in friendly countries. The Russian Federation has already started such negotiations, Izvestia has learned. Kazakhstan intends to be the first to introduce the development. Deputies discussed a single QR code with friendly countries with the Central Bank on the eve of the first reading of the draft law on the introduction of such a tool in the Russian Federation. The document eventually passed the first approval in the State Duma. How the technology will work is described in the Izvestia article.
What is a universal QR code?
The first reading of the draft law on the introduction of a universal QR code in Russia from June 1, 2026 took place on May 22. The author of the document is Anatoly Aksakov, head of the Financial Market Committee. Banks and branches of foreign financial organizations will also be required to implement it and accept payments in this way. During the discussion of the bill in the State Duma, Deputy Chairman of the Central Bank Alexei Guznov noted that discussions were already underway "on the possibility of cooperation with international, foreign payment systems, and systems of friendly countries."
"We already know that Kazakhstan has also decided to create a universal QR code. This will make it possible to eliminate financial issues faster for both Russians and citizens of the republic, and use these technologies to pay for goods in different countries. Other countries also have such solutions: indeed, this is a very important area that we are working on," Alexey Guznov said during the presentation of the bill before the first reading in the State Duma.
We are talking about the introduction of a universal QR code in other countries, which will allow Russians to easily pay abroad, a source familiar with the details of this project explained to Izvestia. According to him, in particular, about the CIS countries. In the future, discussions may touch on more distant destinations, including, for example, Turkey and India.
"We do not disclose the names of the countries with which we are negotiating, for obvious reasons," the Central Bank told Izvestia. — The payment process will not change for the client, it can be done through the mobile applications familiar to him, the integration mechanisms may vary depending on the country.
As Anatoly Aksakov noted, information on this issue is closed and confidential due to possible secondary sanctions from unfriendly states. According to him, the QR code solves the problem of simplifying payments: you can use it to pay for online and offline purchases.
— A universal QR code is a technology that allows a person to get to the distribution page, where all banks and all payment options will be presented, from which customers will be able to choose the product they need. This is where the competition between different payment services and applications will unfold," he added.
The Central Bank told Izvestia in more detail how the universal QR code works.
— When paying at the checkout, a person is offered to scan one code, rather than choose from many, he does this with a mobile phone and gets on the screen, which shows a list of different payment instruments: banking services (bank pay services), SBP, and in the future, the digital ruble, — they said. — The buyer chooses the method that is convenient, familiar or profitable for him. It is important that when paying using a universal QR code, people retain all the privileges of the chosen payment method, and the person will receive bonuses and cashbacks. Thus, he makes an informed choice of which instrument to pay with, without being imposed by a bank or a retail outlet.
What problems can a universal QR code solve?
The universal QR code solves several problems faced by buyers, businesses and banks at once, the Central Bank noted. For example, people now see a lot of different codes at the checkout, and it's easy to get confused about them, because the question arises which one to pay for, and in some cases, the purchase is not possible at all due to the incompatibility of the QR code and the financial organization's application.
— The Central Bank proposes to make sure that the QR code is one, universal, and a person does not get confused in their multitude, but at the same time can have a wide range of different payment tools while retaining all the bonuses and privileges that are beneficial to themselves. The versatility of the QR code is also beneficial for retail outlets: the cashier does not need to ask the customer or explain to him which code to scan, the Central Bank noted. — There are other business advantages: lower costs for updating the cash register software, lack of special equipment, and much more.
As VTB told Izvestia, "the integration of QR codes between countries does not require much time if they agree on a standard for information exchange."
A single QR code is an important step towards digitalization of payments and simplification of settlements between countries, said Vladimir Chernov, analyst at Freedom Finance Global.
— After restrictions related to access to international payment systems, Russia is actively developing its own mechanisms compatible with friendly countries. Such solutions allow not only to increase user convenience, but also to create a sustainable alternative to traditional systems. The introduction of QR payments as part of integration with the CIS countries and other friendly countries seems like a logical development," he said.
According to him, against the background of sanctions, the development of alternative solutions, such as national QR systems, is becoming a strategic direction for the Russian economy.
In addition to Kazakhstan, Armenia, Belarus, and Kyrgyzstan may become promising markets — countries where there is already a certain degree of synchronization in the economy and financial sphere, the expert believes. Perhaps other states, such as Uzbekistan or Azerbaijan, which are gradually increasing trade ties with Russia, will show interest, he admitted.
However, according to Vladimir Chernov, the project may also face difficulties: for example, we are talking about regulatory barriers, since each country has its own payment architecture and anti-money laundering standards. There is also a question of trust, because states must be confident in the security of data transmission and the stability of mutual settlements.
Freedom Finance Global recalled that bank cards issued under the National Payment System (Mir system) are now accepted in many countries, including Turkey, Belarus, and Kazakhstan.
Perhaps this initiative will be implemented within the framework of large state-owned banks, suggested Alexander Neporozhny, deputy Chairman of the board of Finam Bank. Moreover, after the introduction of sanctions against the National Payment System in 2024, the post-Soviet countries quickly abandoned it.
Russians continue to face problems when paying for goods and services abroad with Russian bank cards, including in many friendly countries, and the introduction of QR codes is designed to solve this problem, added Igor Dadonov, an analyst at Finam Bank. Now universal identifiers are already being used quite effectively to pay for foreign purchases in a number of regions, primarily in Southeast Asia, as well as in some CIS countries. Therefore, the potential of this technology seems to be quite good, he is sure.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
