Leading Russian banks discussing creation of competitor to Mir payments system
MOSCOW. June 14 (Interfax) - Leading Russian banks are discussing the creation of a competitor to the Mir payment system (its operator is the National System of Payment Cards, NSPC).
"There should be competition, so it is indeed necessary to create a second system... We are quite active participants, we communicate with many others in order to understand on what terms it could be created, what the form-factor should be, how this product could differ from the current product," Tinkoff Bank chief Stanislav Bliznyuk told reporters on the sidelines of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF).
"There is no clear timeline yet, but there is discussion and communication. It's important to understand that there is a need from the whole market. That is, all market participants understand that this is an important thing to do," he said.
According to him, another 5-10 players are now involved in the discussion. However, the participation of the Central Bank and the government is premature at this stage of the discussion.
"The authorities and the regulator, if there is a request from the market, by and large they are ready to listen. So here, it seems to me, it is much more important not to agree with the authorities and get some instructions from them, but first to come up with a product that will be in demand, " Bliznyuk said.
The main goal is not to copy existing offers on the market, but to create a new kind of product, which will work on the basis of NSPC infrastructure, he said.
"That's the whole idea, to try to find another type of product that will be something different, some audience will be interested in it, there will be a slightly different economy, that's what we're thinking about," he said.
VTB also supports the idea of creating a new system and is taking part in the discussion.
"There are conversations about this initiative in the market, we are involved. We are always in favor of healthy competition, including in terms of payment systems and services," VTB Deputy President and Chairman of the Management Board Anatoly Pechatnikov said on the sidelines of SPIEF.
"When we understand what the new system will provide to the end client, what alternative set of products and services it will be able to offer - then we can deal with this issue in practical terms," Pechatnikov said.
NPCS head Vladimir Komlev said creating a new payment system is a monumental task that takes a long time.
"Competition and creating some sort of alternative structures, there seems to be sense in this. Although we could also discuss what this sense is, and for whom there will be improvements on the market from the creation of parallel payment systems. Nonetheless, this is still serious work that, it seems to me, is still at a stage of putting out feelers," Komlev said.
The head of leading Russian lender Sberbank , Herman Gref said earlier that the bank was participating in discussions with other market participants about creating a competitor to the NPCS.
Previously, Sberbank chief Herman Gref said that the bank took part in discussions on a competitor to the NSPC with other market participants. "In general, it would be nice if either the NSPC changed its status and was sold to market participants, as originally intended so that banks to become its participants, or eventually another market player appeared, so that we can compare the quality of services and influence pricing," Gref said in an interview with RBC.