Apple Pay, Google Pay and other payment services have exited Russian banks amid sanctions imposed by Europe and the United States.
In the midst of the crisis in Ukraine, foreign-held assets were frozen as a protest in the ongoing war. Customers in the region have become unable to use their cards that have been issued by US payment systems such as Apple Pay.
Some of the banking institutions affected by the freeze include VTB Group, Novikombank, Otkritie, Sovcombank and Promsvyazbank, as reported by the Central Bank of Russia.
Incidentally, Russians who are abroad will find themselves unable to use their credit cards, as well as make online payments to companies who are registered in sanction-imposed regions.
In addition, the US government has stopped both software and hardware sales to Russia and impacts all companies who have a footprint in the country. In Apple’s case, it wouldn’t be able to manage the App Store, offer operating system updates or sell the iPhone.
