The Central Bank does not support the creation of a second payment…
The Central Bank does not support the creation of a second payment system. The Bank of Russia did not back banks' initiative to create a second Russian payment system that could become a competitor to the 'Mir' system, said Alla Bakina, head of the department for national payment systems at the Central Bank.
Consensus
- The Central Bank of Russia (CBR) does not support the creation of a second national payment system competing with 'Mir'
- The CBR has consistently required that any new system avoid duplicating existing infrastructure
- Conpetition should occur at the product and service level, not the infrastructure level
- Any payment system must be publicly accessible to all participants
- Creating large-scale infrastructure involves significant costs that would ultimately burden consumers
Points of divergence
- The CBR previously did not object to the idea of privatizing NPSK but required clear financial justification from banks. — vedomosti
- VTB supported maintaining NPSK under CBR control, and in February 2026, Alba Bakina stated that the market showed no strong interest in privatizing NPSK. — vedomosti
- Elvira Nabieulina announced at the Financial Congress of the CBR that the regulator is considering partial privatization of NPSK while retaining a controlling stake (at least 50% + 1 share) and limiting any single investor's share to 5%. — vedomosti
- Rosselkhozbank's Boris Listov supported the idea of privatization, stating that his bank is ready to invest in NPSK capital, with approximately 20 new shareholders expected. — vedomosti
- Listov noted that the privatization would likely be a cash-out transaction where proceeds go to the current shareholder (CBR) rather than company development. — vedomosti
- Vladimir Verkhozinsky of Alfa-Bank raised the issue again in October 2025, and the CBR responded that it would support an alternative to 'Mir' if banks agreed on terms. — interfax
- Vyacheslav Tsyganov from T-Bank said banks have not given up on creating a second payment system but believe timing may be inappropriate now, with potential development possible in about one to two years. — interfax
Coverage (2 sources)
- Central Bank does not support the creation of a second payment system — Ведомости
- The Central Bank of Russia does not support the initiative to create a second payment system — Интерфакс