Putin at meeting with businesses calls for fair solution to dispute between marketplaces, banks; CBR governor agrees to compromise - RSPP president

MOSCOW. Dec 25 (Interfax) - The dispute between marketplaces and banks over the fairness of linking e-commerce loyalty programs to payment methods was the subject of discussion at yesterday's meeting between major businesses and President Vladimir Putin.

Alexander Shokhin, president of the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs (RSPP), told reporters that Putin spoke in favor of finding a fair solution, and Central Bank of Russia Governor Elvira Nabiullina, who attended the event, supported allowing banks to participate in marketplace loyalty programs, provided a balance be maintained in the interests of the players.

"The president has called for amicability and a fair solution based on fair competition. The Central Bank governor confirmed her support to finding a balance of interests, firstly, to allow banks to operate loyalty programs on any marketplaces, and, secondly to avoid depriving marketplaces of the competitive advantages they have in other areas," Shokhin said on the sidelines of the State Council meeting on Thursday.

The topic of marketplaces' relationships with the banking community was raised at the president's meeting with Wildberries founder Tatyana Kim, a source familiar with the meeting told Interfax.