Russian Central Bank Plans to Require Marketplaces to Refund Payments to Same Card Used for Transaction

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The Central Bank of Russia has proposed that digital platforms be required to return funds to the same electronic payment method (e.g., bank card) used for the transaction, unless the customer specifies another payment method or account, according to Interfax. This requirement would apply to all cashless transactions.

The initiative comes in response to customer complaints about digital platforms, including marketplaces, returning funds not to their original bank cards but to anonymous e-wallets within subsidiary banks of these platforms. In some cases, customers were unaware that an e-wallet had been opened in their name and did not see the refunds.

"Given the legal restrictions on unidentified payment methods, these funds cannot simply be withdrawn to a bank card; they can only be spent again. This effectively creates an additional restriction on the use of funds imposed by the digital platform," explained Alexei Chirkov, head of the consumer rights protection and financial services accessibility regulation department at the Central Bank of Russia.