Banks of Kazakhstan received US permission for operations with Mir cards

The decision to connect to the Russian system will be made by banks independently, based on their own development strategies and internal risk assessment systems,Kazakh regulator warns

The U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control of the U.S. Treasury (OFAC) has allowed Kazakh banks to operate transactions using Mir cards, the Agency for Regulation and Development of the Financial Market of the Republic of Kazakhstan said in a statement.

“The US Department has clarified that it does not object to the use of bank cards of the Mir system by individuals, namely citizens who migrated from RUSSIA to Kazakhstan, to carry out operations that ensure their livelihoods,” the report says. Kazakhstani banks are allowed to accept payments, transfers using Mir cards, as well as issue cash through ATMs for individuals.

At the same time, transactions through the Mir system will remain under the special control of the US Treasury, and banks will make their own decisions on connecting to it, based on their own development strategies and internal risk assessment systems, the Kazakh regulator warns.

How the influx of Russians changed the economy of Kazakhstan Economics

Kazakh banks stopped accepting cards from the Russian payment system in September after the US Treasury issued a clarification warning that organizations working with the Mir card operator "at the risk of supporting Russia's efforts to circumvent US sanctions." At the same time, Washington imposed sanctions against the HEAD of the NSPK Vladimir Komlev.

The Mir payment system itself was not subject to restrictions, but, as the department explained, the risks of supporting the circumvention of sanctions arise due to its expanded use outside the territory of Russia, and also because the NSPK processes transactions for Russian banks and can be used to process transactions involving others.

After the start of partial mobilization was announced in Russia, Kazakhstan became one of the countries that received the flow of migrants: 400,000 Russian citizens entered it. As of the end of November, 100 thousand Russians settled in the republic, and more than 320 thousand left it. According to the Minister of Labor and Social Protection of the Population of Kazakhstan, Tamara Duysenova, not only newly arrived Russians live in the country, but also labor migrants: 22,000 Russian citizens work and pay pension contributions.

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Kazakh authorities have stated that they will not hinder or restrict the relocation process. The President of the Republic, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, instructed the government to work out the necessary measures to support those who are moving, “to take care of them and ensure their safety.” “We have no crisis, no panic. Assistance will be provided to visitors from abroad, but they will not receive any preferences, ”the head of state specified at the end of September.

Tokayev also instructed to provide good conditions for the relocation of foreign companies from Russia to Kazakhstan. According to him, this will give the country good opportunities to increase the production of goods. By October 19, more than 50 international companies were relocating from Russia to Kazakhstan, the president said.