Turkish TV channel announced the refusal of three state-owned banks from the Mir card

Three state-owned banks in Turkey have decided to stop using the Russian Mir payment system. This was reported by the Turkish TV channel NTV.

Which banks stopped using the Mir system is not mentioned in the channel's message. Previously, five Turkish banks used the card: Ziraat Bank, Vakifbank, Halkbank, Isbank and Denizbank. Now we can talk about Ziraat Bank, Vakifbank and Halkbank.

On September 19, Mir cards stopped being used by two large private banks in the country: Isbank and Denizbank. Isbank said its decision was influenced by the US Treasury's warning to financial institutions. The warning said that if they enter into new or expand existing agreements with the National Payment Card System (NSPK; Mir card operator), they "risk supporting Russia's efforts to circumvent US sanctions."

According to REUTERS, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan held a meeting to discuss the situation and possible sanctions from Western countries. Later, Erdogan said he would discuss alternatives for the Mir payment system with the government.

In mid-September, the US Treasury warned that "non-US financial institutions that enter into new or expand existing agreements with the NSPK risk supporting Russia's efforts to circumvent US sanctions." Therefore, sanctions may be imposed against such banks.

At the same time, US sanctions do not yet apply to the NSPK itself. However, NSPK CEO Vladimir Komlev is under US sanctions.

After the announcement of the US Treasury, banks began to refuse to use Mir cards. They were no longer accepted by the Kazakh Halyk Bank and the Vietnamese BIDV. On September 23, the service of foreign cards of the Russian payment system was suspended in Uzbekistan.