Russian lenders like Sberbank and Alfa-Bank said that they are working on a rollout of UnionPay cards.
After Visa and Mastercard suspended operations, Russian banks are planning to issue cards using China's UnionPay system.
Russian lenders like Sberbank and Alfa-Bank said that they are working on a rollout of UnionPay cards.
Sberbank, in a statement said, "Sberbank is working on the possibility of issuing co-branded Mir-UnionPay cards. We will inform you later about the timeframe for the issue."
Meanwhile, Alfa Bank said it is "already working on launching cards on UnionPay, China's national payment system," WIONews reports.
As per Russian news agencies, Rosbank, Tinkoff Bank, and the Credit Bank of Moscow (MKB) are also working on releasing UnionPay cards.
Visa and Mastercard on Saturday announced that they will suspend operations in Russia.
"Noting the unprecedented nature of the current conflict and the uncertain economic environment," Mastercard said it had "decided to suspend our network services in Russia."
Visa, on the other hand, said that "effective immediately" it would "work with its clients and partners within Russia to cease all Visa transactions over the coming days."
As per the White House, US President Joe Biden, during a conversation with Volodymyr Zelenskyy, welcomed the decisions of Visa and Mastercard to suspend services in Russia.
"President Biden highlighted the ongoing actions undertaken by the United States, its allies and partners, and private industry to raise the costs on Russia for its aggression in Ukraine. In particular, he welcomed the decision this evening by Visa and Mastercard to suspend service in Russia," the White House said in a statement.