Mastercard and Visa will suspend its operations in Russia, the companies said on Saturday, in the last time in the country’s financial system after its invasion of Ukraine. American Express followed suit on Sunday and said it would suspend operations in Russia.
American Express said its cards would no longer work in Russian retailers or ATMs. In addition, American Express said it would end all trade operations in Belarus.
“One of the values of our company is to do what is right,” American Express said in a statement. “This principle has guided us through this difficult crisis and will continue to do so as we stand by our colleagues, clients and the international community in the hope of a peaceful resolution of this crisis.”
Mastercard said the cards issued by Russian banks will no longer be compatible with its network and no Mastercard issued abroad will work in Russian shops or ATMs.
“We do not take this decision lightly,” Mastercard said in a statement, adding that it made the decision after talks with customers, partners and governments.
Visa said it is working with clients and partners in Russia to stop all Visa transactions in the coming days.
“We are obliged to act after the unprovoked invasion of Russia into Ukraine and the unacceptable events we have witnessed,” Visa President and CEO Al Kelly said in a statement.
Mark Lennihan / AP
The twin suspensions were announced within 16 minutes of each other and continued on private video call earlier in the day between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and US lawmakers. During that conversation, Zelensky “asked us to turn off MasterCard and Visa for Russia,” tweeted Rep. Brad Sherman, a California Democrat. “I agree,” he added, before Mastercard and Visa made their announcements.
Earlier this week, Visa and Mastercard announced more limited moves to block financial institutions from networks that serve as arteries for the payment system. The Russians have already been hit hard by heavy sanctions and economic sanctions imposed by the U.S. government and others.
Since the invasion of Ukraine, the value of the Russian currency, the ruble, has fallen by more than a third to an all-time low. This is raising inflation for Russian households, and all the fear has helped cause long queues at ATMs.
Many other companies They have also made moves around the world to increase financial pressure on Russia and its people due to its attack on Ukraine. Some sell their stakes in Russian companies, such as energy giant BP, while others like Harley-Davidson have stopped shipments of products to the country.
“This war and the constant threat to peace and stability demand that we respond in accordance with our values,” Kelly said of Visa.
Mastercard and Visa moves could make a real difference in your results. Russia accounted for 4% of all Visa’s net income in its last fiscal year, including money earned from domestic and cross-border activities. Ukraine accounted for about 1%, Visa said in a presentation to U.S. securities regulators this week.
Mastercard said in its own presentation that about 4% of its net income in 2021 came from businesses in, in and out of Russia. Another 2% was related to Ukraine.
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