Two major banks in Turkey stopped operations with Mir cards

The largest banks in Turkey, Is Bankasi and DenizBank, have stopped servicing Russian Mir cards. According to Bloomberg, the decision was made against the backdrop of the possible imposition of US sanctions. When using the Mir card, it transmits TASSATMs report a transaction confirmation error and return the card.

Is Bankasi is the first public bank in Turkey. It serves about 20 million customers, has 1205 branches in Turkey and 22 abroad. Isbank was the first to provide Mir card service in Turkey in April 2019. DenizBank has 708 branches in Turkey and 43 branches in other countries. The bank’s client base is more than 11.8 million people. The bank began to carry out transactions with the Mir card in May.

On September 15, the US Treasury announced its readiness to impose sanctions for ensuring the use of the Mir payment system outside of Russia. On the same day, the Financial Times reported that the United States and the European Union were pressuring Turkey to prevent Russia from evading sanctions. The US and the EU, as noted by the publication, intend to call on Ankara to suspend the use of the Mir system in the country’s banks. In addition to Is Bankasi and DenizBank, transactions with Mir cards are carried out by the three largest banks in Turkey: VakfBank, Ziraat Bank, and Halkbank.

Lusine Balasyan