MFOs will be required to conduct biometrics when issuing online microloans.

From March 1, 2026, quick loans without biometric identification will become illegal, and "loans in five minutes" will no longer exist. Olga Chirikova, senior lecturer at the Department of Civil Law Disciplines at Plekhanov Russian University of Economics, told about this on February 23.

"Legally, this means that in order to conclude an agreement in electronic form, an organization no longer has the right to limit itself to checking passport data and an SMS code. An electronic contract is allowed only if a biometric procedure is performed in the format prescribed by law," Chirikova explained to the Prime agency.

Mandatory identification applies to microfinance organizations, whereas for microcredit companies the rule will become effective only from March 1, 2027. Offline signing of contracts will continue to work without biometrics, as the norm applies exclusively to the remote format. For citizens, this means that it will be impossible to apply for an online loan without registering in the biometric system, and for MFIs, non-compliance with the requirements will entail risks of a supervisory response.

Nothing personal: a quarter of MFOs may close due to biometrics loans.

Soon, Russians will not be able to get a micro-loan online without checking through a single system.

Chairman of the State Duma Vyacheslav Volodin reported on February 21 that Russian citizens had imposed 22 million self-restrictions on consumer loans and loans in a year. According to Volodin, the mechanism has reduced cases of credit fraud by 40%, and the total amount of stolen funds has decreased by 8%. The mechanism is most actively used by citizens aged 35-45 years, which, according to the Chairman of the State Duma, confirms its effectiveness.

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