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Russian Banks Reported to Temporarily Block 2–3 Million Cards as Central Bank Reviews Anti-Fraud Rules

Experts urge clearer guidance from the central bank on how banks should apply the expanded fraud checks.

Overview

  • Kommersant, citing experts including Informzashchita, reports 2–3 million cards and accounts were temporarily frozen in early January, roughly 1–2% of active clients.
  • The Bank of Russia has not released centralized statistics but says it continually evaluates existing requirements and adjusts them as needed.
  • The regulator says it has modified the rehabilitation process for cryptocurrency sellers who were flagged and entered in its fraud operations database.
  • From January 1, banks began using broadened red flags—for example, outgoing transfers after a large self-credit, cash deposits via digital cards at ATMs, atypical software or network use for online banking, and matches in the digital ruble recipient registry.
  • Experts including RTM Group’s Fedor Muzalevsky and NTI’s Viktor Dostov expect false positives to ease as banks refine models, with normalization projected within about six months.